HS431 
.M85 





MASONIC 



bcs anb Sjioettts, 



By KOB MORRIS, LL. D. 



MASONIC WRITER. 



Thus life and beauty come to view, 
In each design our fathers drew, 

So glorious and sublime ; 
Each breathes an odor from the bloom 
Of gardens bright beyond the tomb, 

Beyond the flight of time. 



$*fo fork: 
ROB MORRIS, NO. 545 BROADWAY 

MACOT & SICKELS, 430 BROOME ST. 
1864. 






Entered, according to Act of Congress, in the year 1S04, by 

ROB MORRIS, 

in the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the United States for the Southern 
District of New York. 



*o3 



BAKER & GODWIX, Fbinters, 

Printing-House Square, opposite City Hall, 
New Yoke. 



TO 

GEORGE OLIVER, D. D., 

OF SCOPTVICK VICARAGE, ENGLAND. 
YOUE RESEAttCHES IN THE 

*Sigtort) anb spirit of Pasonit gjimbolisms 

Have awakened new interest and inaugurated a 

BETTER ERA IN THE LITERATURE 

OF THE BELOVED 

THE LAMENTED SCOTT, OF MISSISSIPPI, 

Was one of the sons of your genius, and an entire generation of Ma:onic writers 
lias acknowledged your preeminence. 

PERMIT ONE OF THE HUMBLEST OF THE FAMILY TO 

LAY AT YOUR FEET THIS VOTIVE WREATH, 

AND TO ASF ITS ACCEPTANCE 



PREFACE. 



Some of these pieces have gone the rounds of the 
press, masonic and secular, for a considerable period, 
and have attracted the favorable attention of the public. 
Others have been examined in manuscript by persons 
whose judgment in matters of this kind is admittedly 
worthy of consideration. The author has recited many 
of them in discourses to lodges and public assemblies. 
These authorities seem to concur in a verdict, and to 
express the wish that the pieces, as a whole, may be pub- 
lished. 

Whatever predilection the author may feel for his 
literary offspring, he would not have ventured upon so 
daring an experiment as a volume of Masonic poems 
but for these assurances of favor ; and if, after all, he 
has misunderstood the general expression upon this sub- 
ject, he casts himself upon the forbearance of those whose 
good opinion he has so long sought to propitiate. 

New York, June, 1864. 



CONTENTS. 



PAGE. 

The Sowing of the Seed 13 

Setting a Memorial 15 

The Level and the Square 17 

The Goodly Heritage 19 

Yearnings 20 

King Solomon's Farewell 21 

Quarry, Hill, and Temple 24 

Fragrance of a Good Deed 26 

A Parting Hymn 27 

Song for St. John's Day 28 

The Obedient Disciple 29 

Via Lucis, Via Crucis 31 

The Beacon-Light 32 

Voice of the Temple 33 

Building the Fane 33 

Hymn of the Mason-Soldiers 35 

Earnestness of Covenanting 3G 

T 



8 CONTENTS. 

PAGE. 

The Fervor of Affiliation 37 

The Enclosure 38 

Masonic Training 39 

Ask ! Seek ! ! Knock ! ! ! 40 

Masonic Auld-Lang-Syne 41 

Tears and Smiles 42 

Nunc Dirnittis 43 

Lingering Notes 45 

The Giving of the Shoe 46 

Inscriptions for a Lodge-Room 47 

The Pillars of the Porch 48 

Cherishing the Pledge 49 

Let Your Light Shine 50 

Brotherly Love 51 

The Fire of Friendship 52 

"Words of Peace and Love 53 

The Pilgrim's Home 54 

Hymn for Consecration 56 

The "White-aproned Brothers 57 

Hours of Praise 59 

The Dying Hope 61 

Ono 62 

Pledge to a Dying Brother 63 

A Look to the Orient 65 

Prayer — Oral or Secret 66 



CONTENTS. 9 

PAGE. 

The Song of St. John 67 

Tribute to Washington 69 

The Broken Column 70 

A Mason's Epitaph 71 

Death, the Celestial Gate 72 

Burns' Farewell 74 

The Crescent 75 

Duties of the Craft 76 

Verdant, Fragrant, Enduring 77 

Fredstole : the Seat of Peace 78 

Ode for a "Winter Festival 79 

The Quarry of Life 80 

The Cedar Tree 81 

A Lodge Valedictory 82 

Hard Service, Good Wages 83 

Faith of the Olden Time 85 

The Resurrection 87 

Consecration of a Cemetery 88 

So Mote it Be 90 

A Hebrew Chant 91 

Go on thy Bright Career 92 

The Freemasons' Home 93 

The Dying Request 94 

The All-Seeing Eye 96 

Appreciation 97 



iO 



CONTENTS. 



PAGE. 



Leaning Towards Each Other 98 

The Hour of Eleven 100 

Corn. Wine. Oil 102 

Tribute to Robert Bums j 4 

The Foundation Stone 105 

The Inheritance of Friendship 106 

To Masons Everywhere 10 g 

A Masonic Greeting 110 

The Happy Hour m 

The World-wide Recognition 113 

The Widow and the Fatherless 113 

The Death of the Grand Master 115 

The Veteran's Lament 1 17 

Washington -. * ~ 

The Three Salutes 124 

The Master of the Upright Heart 125 

Masonic Valedictory 19 g 

A Masonic Symposium 130 

The Narrow Boundary 132 

New Year's Reflections 13 o 

Timely Warning i „ 

i*) 

A Welcome into Masonry jog 

Dividing the Tessera 13g 

HighXn 14Q 

The Checkered Pavement -,,-. 



CONTENTS. 11 

PAGE. 

The Focus of the Lodge 143 

The Decayed Lodge 144 

The Duelist 146 

The Tracing-Board 147 

Fellow Crafts' Song 149 

The Teacher to His Pupils 150 

Tribute to a Friend 152 

The Two Visits 153 

Brother's Last Request 155 

A Festival Ode 156 

Centennial Ode 158 

Grave of the Grand Master 159 

Rise Up : He Calleth Thee 161 

The Dark Decree 162 

The Pursuit of Franklin 163 

Monody to the Hon. P. C. Tucker 166 

Song and Freemasonry 167 

The Funeral Sound 169 

Crypt in the Corner-Stone 170 

Our Future Meeting 171 

Emblems of the Craft 172 

Solomon's Midnight Visit 174 

The Spirit of Union 176 

The Orient 178 

The Passage of Time 179 



12 CONTENTS. 

PAGE. 

The Model Mason 180 

The Loving Tie 181 

The Hour Glass 183 

The Cheerful Hour at High XH 184 

Knight Templar's Dirge 185 

The Test 186 

A Dedication 188 

Lines to Lexington Lodge 189 

Walking Together 100 

Exhortation to Charity 191 

The Temple 193 

The "Wise Choice of Solomon 195 

The Celestial Record 197 

The Perfect Ashlars 198 

The Last. Last Word 199 



MASONIC ODES AND POEMS. 



)t Stffomg of % Stoefc. 



We are exhorted, in that Volume about which an oblong square 
is formed in a Masonic Lodge, "to sow beside all waters." In a 
lodge of Freemasons, no more than in any other society, is there 
perfect sameness in sentiment and choice. While similarity in 
physical, mental, and moral qualifications is needful in the construc- 
tion of our social edifice, there are diversities of character sufficiently 
marked among us to justify the poet in offering the following para- 
phrase of Luke viii. 5-8, as his Salutatory : 

He that hath ears to hear, 
May listen now, 
While I shall tell, in mystic words indeed, 
Of a good husbandman who took his seed 
And went to sow. 

Some by the wayside fell ; 

On breezes borne, 
The fowls of air flew down, a greedy train, 
And snatched with hasty appetite the grain, 

Till all was gone. 



14 THE SOWING OF THE SEED. 

Some fell upon a rock ; 

And greenly soon, 
They sprouted as for harvest, strong and fair ; 
But when the summer sun shone hotly there, 

They wilted down. 

Some fell among the thorns — 

A fertile soil — 
But ere the grain could raise its timid head, 
Luxuriantly the accursed plants o'erspread, 

And choked them all. 

But some in the good ground — 

God's precious mould — 
"Where sun, breeze, dew, and showers apportioned well : 
And in the harvest, smiling swains could tell 

Their hundred fold ! 



Following the ancient example, we would disseminate the thoughts 
with which we are charged in every part of the mystic work, in quarry, 
hill, and temple ; among the tall cedars ; upon the floats ; upon the 
road from Joppa to Jerusalem ; in the crypts of the Holy Mountain, — 
wherever, for moral and sacred purposes, the Master wields his Gavel 
or the Workmen prepare sound blocks and set them duly in place. 



jetting a jUenumal. 



A Memorial is that which preserves the memory of a person, place, 
or event. In olden times, a pillar, a heap of stones, or a mound was 
raised by contracting parties to perpetuate friendships. The ancient 
landmarks of Masonry, morally considered, are Memorials of the 
boundary lines set up by the Royal Originator of the great Insti- 
tution. 

The objects most appropriate for Memorials between Masons, are 
the Tessera (of which something will be said hereafter) and the Ever- 
green Sprig, the subject of the present lines. The latter is more em- 
blematical than the former, as referring more directly to events that 
formed part of the Initiatory services of Masonry, and were indelibly 
engraven upon the candidate's heart. The Evergreen Sprig repre- 
sents the Sprig of Acacia, an oriental plant with oriental allusions ex- 
plained best in the esoteric traditions of Masonry 

The instructed mind fastens upon this emblem. It is equally 
grateful in fragrance as in verdure, and it long resists the power 
of decay. The lessons it imparts, as it falls from the brotherly hand 
into the open grave, are full of pathos and solemnity. For ages 
it has been wet with the tears of mourners as it mingled with the 
fresh sods of mother-earth upon the coffin of the departed friend, until 
it seems, to the fanciful ear, to whisper from its native bough the song 
of faith undying, and of perfect love. 

We'll set a green sprig here to-night, 

To rescue, from the days to come, 
Each bright and joyous memory, 

That henceforth gilds this festive room ; 
And should occasion e'er require 

A token, to recall the place, 
These leaves will bring to clearest view, 

The cheerful thought and sunny face. 



16 SETTING A MEMORIAL. 

We'll set a green and deathless sprig — 

Each leaf a Brother's name shall have ; 
And fragrant will th' Acacia bloom 

When one has parted to the grave : 
When one in Temple-labors fails, 

And golden bowl is broken quite, 
How grateful to the sense will be 

The green sprig that we set to-night ! 

We'll set the sprig with every hand — 

Come round, and plant the deathless tree ! 
There is not one in all this band, 

But what is marked by destiny ; 
Death comes to all — how well to know 

There is a life beyond this scene, 
Whose deathless limit may be read, 

Oh Brothers, in this sacred green ! 

We'll set the green sprig deep in love ; 

We'll water it with sympathy ; 
We'll give it fond and faithful care, 

Nor shall a single leaflet die ; 
And when the last of this true band, 

Death's mighty puissance shall attest, 
May those who follow after say, 

Faithful and true, how sweet they rest ! 



re Ifebel anfj % <§rjtmr,e. 



These lines, written in the summer of 1 854, have acquired a popu- 
larity equaled, perhaps, by no similar production, since the "Fare- 
well " of Robert Burns, whose pathetic words : 

" Adieu ! a heart-warm fond adieu, 
Dear brothers of the mystic tie," 

have opened the fountain of tears in three generations of Freemasons. 
Set to no less than ten distinct melodies, several of them original, and 
of rare merit, " The Level and the Square " is sung at Labor and at 
Refreshment, upon the journey, at the grave's side, in the domestic 
circle, and wherever else Freemasons congregate to do Masons' work 
or to enjoy Masons' wages. 

The writer is not so presumptuous as to attribute this great favor 
to the merit of the lines themselves, but rather to the theory which 
they present of the relation which the earthly bears to the heavenly 
lodge. This theory accords with the general view entertained of 
Masonry through all the historic period, at least. 



We meet upon the Level and we part upon the Square ; 
"What words of precious meaning those words Masonic are ! 
Come, let us contemplate them, they are worthy of a thought — 
In the very soul of Masonry those precious words are wrought. 

We meet upon the Level, though from every station come — 
The rich man from his mansion, and the poor man from his 

home; 
For the one must leave his heritage outside the Mason's door, 
While the other finds his best respect upon the Checkered 

Floor. 

IT 



18 THE LEVEL AND THE SQUARE. 

We part upon the Square, for the world must have its due ; 
We mingle with the multitude, a faithful band and true ; 
But the influence of our gatherings in memory is green, 
And we long upon the Level to renew the happy scene. 

There's a World where all are equal, we are hurrying towards it 

fast ; 
We shall meet upon the Level there, when the gates of death 

are past ; 
We shall stand before the Orient, and our Master will be there 
To try the blocks we offer with his own unerring Square. 

We shall meet upon the Level there, but never thence depart ; 
There's a Mansion — 'tis all ready for each trusting, faithful 

heart — 
There's a Mansion and a welcome, and a multitude is there, 
Who have met upon the Level and been tried upon the 

Square. 

Let us meet upon the Level then, while laboring patient here ; 
Let us meet and let us labor, though the labor be severe ; 
Already in the Western Sky the signs bid us prepare 
To gather up our Working tools, and part upon the Square ! 

Hands round, ye faithful Masons, in the bright, fraternal 

chain ! 
We part upon the Square below, to meet in heaven again ; 
Oh ! what words of precious meaning those words Masonic are, 
We meet upon the Level and we part upon the Square ! 



Ciw (§0obfo Pottage. 



The Psalmist, expressing the hope of his calling, of the resurrection, 
and of life everlasting, cries aloud, in an ecstacy of gratitude, " The 
lines have fallen unto me in pleasant places ; yea, I have A goodly 
heritage ;" and afterwards, in recounting his former experience, he 
confesses that God has heard his vows and has given him the herit- 
age of those that fear His name. 

Oh what a goodly heritage 

The Lord to us hath given ! 
How blest the brotherhood that pledge 

Their Mason- vows to heaVen ! 
"We sing the mystic-chain that binds 

These western realms in one ; 
Such loving hearts, such Liberal minds, 

No other land has known. 

Five thousand lights in Mason-halls, 

Are gleaming on our eyes ; 
Five thousand emblems on the walls, 

Tell whence the gleaming is ; 
And when the portals ope, to pass 

The humble seeker in, 
The voice of prater pervades the place, 

And proves the light Diveste ! 

On every hill our brothers lie, 

And green sprigs deck the knoll ; 
Their fall brought sorrow to the eye, 

But triumph to the soul : 

19 



20 YEARNINGS. 

Our orphans lighten many a home, 
Our widows' hearts are glad, 

And Mason-light dispels the gloom 
And comfort finds the sad. 

Thus link in link, from shore to shore, 

The mystic chain is wound ; 
Oh, blended thus forever more, 

Be Mason-spirits found ! 
And while the heavens, on pillars sure, 

Of Strength and "Wisdom stand, 
May brotherhood like ours endure, 

"Where Strength and Wisdom blend f 



gwntiwjs. 



Brothers, when o'er my head, 

The silent dust is spread, 
And this poor heart its quiverings shall forbear, 

Where'er my body lie, 

Though far the grave away, 
I would, dear Brothers, be remembered here ! 

Brothers, when tender sighs 

Around me shall arise, 
And speak of what I did, or fain would do, 

Such honest, truthful words, 

As Masons' tongue affords, 
I would, dear Brothers, have rehearsed by you /, 



ping jSolmram's Jtebwll. 



It is not difficult to conceive what the parting words of Solomon to 
his Temple-builders must have been, nor is it strange if tradition has 
preserved it, in the main, faithfully. 

The original plan upon which the architects drafted, was given, 
we are informed, " in writing by the Spirit," to King David, and by 
him transferred to his son. This gave the stamp of Divinity to the 
structure. All the after-plans, secondary to the original, were neces- 
sarily in accordance with it ; so that the Royal Builder might well ad- 
vise his workmen in the spirit of the following lines : 



King Solomon sat in bis ivory cliair, 
His chair on a platform high, 

And bis words addressed, 

Through the Listening "West, 
To a Band of Brothers nigh ; 

Through the West and South, 

These words of truth, 
To a Band of Brothers nigh. 



*' Te Builders go ! ye have done your work — 
The Capstone standeth sure ; 

From the lowermost block, 

To the loftiest rock, 
The Fabric is secure ; 

From the Arch's Swell, 

To the Pinnacle, 
The Fabric is secure. 

21 



22 king Solomon's farewell. 

" Go, crowned with fame ! old time will pass,. 
And many a change will bring, 

But the Deed you've done, 

The circling sun 
Through every land will sing ; 

The moon and stars, 

While earth endures, 
Through every land will sing. 



" Go build like this ! from the quarries vast,. 
The precious stones reveal ; 

There's many a block 

In the matrice rock, 
Will honor your fabrics well ; 

There's many a beam, 

By the mountain-stream, 
Will honor your fabrics well. 



" Go build like this ! strike off with skill, 
Each superfluity ; 
With critic eye, 
Each fault espy, 

Be ZEALOUS, FERVENT, FREE ; 

By the perfect Square, 
Your work prepare — 
Be zealous, fervent, free. 



king Solomon's farewell. 23 

"Go build like this ! to a fitting place, 
Rear up the Ashlars true ; 

On the Trestleboard 

Of your Master's Lord, 
The Grand Intention view ; 

In each mystic line, 

Of the vast Design, 
The Grand Intention view. 



" Go build like this ! and when exact, 
The joinings scarce appear, 

With the Trowel's aid, 

Such cement spread, 
As time can never wear ; 

Lay thickly round, 

Such wise compound, 
As time can never wear. 

" Go, Brothers ! thus enjoined, farewell ! 
Spread o'er the darkened West ; 

Illume each clime, 

With Art sublime, 
The noblest truths attest ; 

Be Masters now, 

And as you go, 
The noblest truths attest !" 



<®uarrn, ptt, aiitr foemplc. 

The well-known expression in the caption suggests, in the symboli- 
cal language of Freemasonry, those various departments of mystical 
labor in which the speculative craftsmen are employed. To declare 
one's attachment to his friend, " in quarry, hill, and temple," is to 
confess a friendship independent of time, place, and circumstances. 
The ties of Masonry, accepted in the presence of Deity and under the 
Divine sanction, are of this nature, and. in a good man's heart, indis- 
soluble. 

Thine in the Quarry, whence the stone 
For mystic workmanship is drawn : 

On Jordan's shore, 

By Zarthan's plain, 
Though faint and weary, thine alone. 
The gloomy mine knows not a ray — 
The heavy toil exhausts the day — 

But love keeps bright 

The weary heart, 
And sings, Pm thine without decay. 

Thine on the Hill whose cedars rear 
Their perfect forms and foliage fair : 

Each graceful shaft 

And deathless leaf, 
Of Masons' love the emblems are. 
Thine when a smile pervades the heaven — 
Thins when the sky 's with thunder riven — 

Each echo swells 

Through answering hills, 
My Mason prayer, for thee "'tis given. 

2-1 



QUARRY, HILL AND TEMPLE. 25 

Thine in the Temple, holy place — 
Where silence reigns, the type of peace ; 

With grip and sign, 

And mystic line, 
My Mason's love I do confess. 
Each block we raise, that friendship grows, 
Cemented firmly ne'er to loose ; 

And when complete, 

The work we greet, 
Thine in the joy my bosom knows. 

Thine at the midnight in the cave — 
Thine in the floats upon the wave — 

By Joppa's hill, 

By Kedron's rill, 
And thine when Sabbath rest we have. 
Yes, yes, dear friend, my spirit saith, 
Pm thine until and after death ! 

No bounds control 

The Mason's soul 
Cemented with a Mason's faith ! 



Jfrajgrana 0f k 6000 g^tr. 



Many years since, a poor sojourner through the wilds of Texas 
paused at a farmhouse on the lonely banks of the Brazos, to die. 
The owner, a Freemason, discovered the Masonic claims of his guest 
not too late to make the mystic tie available. All the consolations of 
brotherly sympathy and attendance were freely bestowed upon him, 
and when these could avail the pilgrim no longer, his remains were 
tenderly consigned to maternal earth, the generous planter reading 
the Masonic service and covering in the precious dust, alone I 

Long years afterwards, and when a populous village had sprung 
up upon the river banks, a Masonic lodge was established there. The 
hall was built, and the Mount Moriah upon which it was erected was 
the green knoll beneath which the stranger's bones are mouldering ! 
Moreton Lodge, No. 72, at Richmond, Texas, yet (1855) stands to per- 
petuate " the fragrance of a good deed !" 



On hallowed ground those walls are reared ; 

That roof encloses in 
A spot to Masonry endeared, 

To Zion's Mount, akin ; 
Since Zion's Temple is bereft 

And Judah mourns his God, 
No holier site on earth is left, 

Than this our feet have trod. 



For here, inspired by truest faith, 
Relief a Brother gave — 

Upheld a wanderer unto death 
And blessed him with a grave : 

2fi 



A PARTING HYMN. 27 

Aye, -with a grave whose portals closed 

To that majestic song, 
"Which has to the fraternal host, 

Brought deathless hopes so long. 

The Eye Divine approved the deed — 

'Tis graven as with steel ; 
And when the noble act we read 

This fond desire we feel, — 
That all our mystic work and word 

Thus modeled well may be, 
And so the Temple of our God 

Rise fast and gloriously ! 



% farting pgntn-. 

Refreshed with angels' food we go, 
To serve Thee in thy work below ; 
Trusting, when Sabbath-rest is given, 
To share Thy richer joys in Heaven. 

Then, bind our willing souls in one ; 
Confirm the Covenants here begun ; 
Each day those vows more sacred be, 
Cemented in eternity. 



Sflnjg; for St. $,ojm's gag. 

These lines have been set to music by Professor Henry Tuckev, of New York. 

Ended now the Masons' labors, 
Past the travel and the toil ; 
Gather in ye loving neighbors, 
Share the Corn, the "Wine, the Oil : 
Brethren now, of each degree, 
Come in harmony and glee ; 
Happy meeting, 
Gentle greeting, — 
'Tis the joy of Masonry. 

Spirits of the blest departed, 

As on earthly ways they roam, 

Where are met the faithful-hearted, 

They to share our labors come ; 
Though their forms we cannot see 
They are here with you and me. 

Love unites us with its cement ; 
Truth inspires the Masons' breast ; 
Ever faithful, ever clement, — 
Thus our doctrines we attest. 
Thus we come of each degree, 
Come in harmony and glee ; 
Happy meeting, 
Gentle greeting, — 
'Tis the joy of Masonry. 
28 



%\t <§kbW gxgdpk 



The ancient historian, Jamblichus, describes with unction, the cir- 
cumstance that forms the basis of the following piece. 

The two travelers, therein named, were disciples of Pythagoras, 
whose system of secret affiliation, if it was not Freemasonry, at least 
exhibited the benevolent features which make up so large a part of it. 



A Brother, bound for distant lands, 

In sickness fell alone, alone ; 
And stranger care from stranger hands, 

Did the last rites of nature own. 
But ere the trembling spirit passed, 
He on a Tablet faintly traced — 

Some mystic lines — a spiral Thread — 
A Square — an emblem of the Sun — 

A Chequered Band, that none could read- 
And then his work and life were done. 

And stranger care from stranger hands, 

Gave him kind burial in the sands. 



Full many a year swept by, swept by, 
And the poor stranger was forgot ; 

While on an olive column, nigh, 

That Tablet marked his burial spot ; 

And many gazed at Square and Thread, 

And many guessed, but none could read. 

29 



-30 THE OBEDIENT DISCIPLE. 

But then a sage Disciple came, 

Of one whose wisdom filled the land — 

Himself right worthy of the name — 
The thoughtful head and ready hand : 

He looked upon the mystic lines, 

And read the Tablets fdl designs. 

It spoke of one long passed before, 
In quest of truth, like him sincere ; 

Of one gone onward, never more 
To delve in mines deep hidden here ; 

And solemn was the lesson traced — 

Lo Pilgrim ! His your fate at last! 

Awe-struck, yet wiser now, he strayed 
In solemn silence from the spot ; 

Repaid the debt his brother made, 

And Eastward journeyed on his lot ; 

Yet never on life's shifting wave, 

Lost he the lesson of that grave. 

How weighty is the charge we give, 
Brethren, in this short history read — 

To bless the living while ice live, 
And leave some tohens when ice're dead I 

On life's broad Tablet let us trace 
Emblems to mark our burial-place ! 



Bm i^uris, Wm Cruris. 



"The way of light is the way of the Cross," is one of those an- 
cient maxims which hoth in rhythm and reason commends itself to the 
favor of every reader. The entire System of Freemasonry is an illus- 
tration of it. 



How sad to the Grave are our feet slowly tending, 

The cold form of one whom we loved, on the bier ! 
What sighs swell our hearts while above him we're bending, 

And shudder to think we must part with him here ! 
Ah, gloomy is life when our friend has departed ! 

Ah, weary the pathway to travel alone ! 
There's little remaineth to cheer the lone-hearted 

Oppressed with the burden, " the loved one is gone I" 

But glad from the Grave are our feet homeward tending, 

Though death's cold embraces our Brother restrain ! 
Hope springs from the hillock above which we're bending, 

And whispers " Rejoice ! you shall meet him again ! 
Death's midnight is sad, but there cometh the morning ; 

The pathway is dark but its ending is nigh." 
Then patient we wait till the glorious dawning, 

That's told in our emblems of life in the sTcy ! 
31 



re |taaarn:-!p0jri 



A city set upon a hill, 

Cannot be hid ; 
Exijosed to every eye, it will, 
Over surrounding plain and vale, 

An influence shed, 
And spread the light of peace afar, 
Or blight the land with horrid war. 

Each Masons' lodge is planted so, 

For high display ; 
Each is a Beacon-light, to show 
Life's weary wanderers, as they go, 

The better way ; 
To show by ties of earthly love, 
How perfect is the Lodge above ! 

Be this your willing task, dear friends, 

While laboring here ; 
Borrow from Him who kindly lends, 
The Heavenly Ladder that ascends 

The higher sphere ; 
And let the world your progress see, 
Upward, by Faith, Hope, Charity. 



Bam of Ik Cemple, 



The Voice of the Temple ! the tidings of Love, 
That speaks of the Master who reigneth above ; 
" His Glory, His Glory, in the Highest who dwells, 
And Good-will to man " is the burden it tells ! 

Come Brothers, in chorus 

Prolong the glad tidings, 
No duty so sweet as the hymning of God : 

His faith each professing, 

His knowledge possessing, 
Exalt each the blessing His grace hath bestowed. 



§ttHbm0 % Jfmx*, 



The cry of Nehemiah, when, on his return to Jerusalem, he saw 
the Royal City lying " heaps upon heaps," has, in every age, echoed 
upon the heart of the moral builder. Oh, the world in ruins ! oh, the 
wrecks of humanity, lying about us on every hand, and crying aloud 
for the Master Builder, who alone can reconstruct the edifice so fear- 
fully cast down ! 

Come, Comrades, let us build ! * 

Our Mason-hearts are filled 
"With fond solicitude and keen desire, f 

While musing o'er these heaps, 

Whose every ashlar keeps 
The stains of bloodshed and the marks of fire ! | 



34 BUILDING THE FANE. 

"What though some voice would say 
"Leave Salem to decay !" § 

Our Mason-hearts were not instructed thus : 
Let's work for Salem's Lord, — 
And, Comrades, be assured 

The God of Heaven, He will j^rosper us ! || 

With goodly Sword and bright, 

With Trowel in the right, 
Each hand is sanctified to God's employ : IT 

Let's build, nor doubt that soon — 

This weary labor done — 
Our Mason-hearts will feel the Builder's joy ! 



* Come and let us build up the wall of Jerusalem, that we be no more a reproach, 
— Nehemiah, ii., IT. 

1 1 sat down and wept, and mourned, and fasted, and prayed. — Nehemiah, i.,4. 

X They slew with the sword young man and maiden, old man, and him that 
stooped for age, and they burnt the house of God and all the palaces with fire. — 
2 Chronicles xxxvi., 17, 18. 

§ Sanballat and Tobiah and Geshem laughed us to scorn, and despised us and 

said, What is this thing that ye do ? — Nehemiah, ii., 19. 

\ I answered and said unto them, " The God of Heaven, He will prosper us, 
therefore, we His servants will arise and build." — Nehemiah, ii., 20. 

^ Every one with one of his hands wrought in the work, and with the other hand 
held a weapon. — Nehemiah, iv., 17. 

** They sang together by course in praising and giving thanks, and all the people 
shouted with a great shout, because the foundation of the house of the Lord was 
laid.— Ezra, ill., 11. 



Jgmtt of % |$las0it-S0ltrbrs. 

In camp, hospital, and on the march, the " Friends of the Square " 
in the Union armies, were wont, during the campaigns of the fall and 
winter of 1863, to enliven the sad hours by singing this " Hymn of 
the Mason-Soldiers," as arranged to Professor Henry Tucker's un- 
equaled melody, " "When this Cruel War is Over." 

Brothers, met from every nation, 

Far away from home, 
Men of every rank and station, 

Round this altar come. 
Bring your hearts, so full of feeling ; 

Join your hands, so true ; 
Swear, ye sons of truth and honor, 
Naught shall sever you. 
Chorus. — War's dark cloud will vanish — 
Joy to East and West , 
Oh, Brothers ! 
Though the land is full of weeping, 
Masons, Masons still are blest. 

Come, forgetting every sorrow, 

Level bring and Square ; 
Leave all trouble to to-morrow ; 

Each the Compass bear , 
Pass the Trowel o'er each discord ; 

Wear the Lambskin white ; 
Brothers, one more happy meeting, 

In our Lodge to-night. 



36 EARNESTNESS OF COVENANTING. 

In the circle here extended, 

Shadowy forms appear ; 
With our loving spirits blended, 

Dead ones, ah, how dear ! 
Dead on many a field of battle, 

Lost to friends and home, 
Yet in Mason's love surviving, 

Round this altar come. 

When to distant homes returning, 

We shall say farewell, 
And shall cease the tender yearning, 

Now our bosoms feel — 
Prattling lips and sweet caresses, 

All the joys of home, 
Will bring back the loving circle, 

Round this altar come. 



(Siartusimss 0f €obmmtm%> 

Never will I break the Covenant, 

Plighted, Brother, with thee now ! 
One between us stands, attesting 

To the fervor of my vow : 
In his name, above his Promise, 

By his honor, for his cause, 
Here's my hand, the Lord confirm it, — 

I will surely keep my vows ! 



n Jftrta 0f gjEliattoii. 



The privilege of association in a harmonious, strongly-cemented 
band of Masons, is a thing to be coveted. Exiles from home, deprived 
of the long-accustomed pleasures of the lodge, have been known to 
express their yearnings for re-affiliation in language not less forcible 
than this. In the military camps, these lines sung to the common 
air " A Life on the Ocean Wave," are very popular. 

A place in the Lodge for me, 
A home with the free and bright, 
Where jarring chords agree, 
And the darkest soul is light : 
Not here, not here is bliss, 
There's turmoil and there's gloom ; 
My spirit yearns for peace — 
Say, Brothers, say, is there room ! 

My feet are weary worn, 

And my eyes are dim with tears ; 

This world is all forlorn, 

A wilderness of fears ; 

But tliere's one green spot oeloio, 

There's a resting place, a home, 

My spirit yearns to know — 

Say, Brothers, say, is there room ! 

I hear the orphan's cry, 
And I see the widow's tear ; 
I weep when mortals die, 
And none but God is near ; 



38 THE ENCLOSURE. 

From sorrow and despair, 
I seek the Mason's home, 
My spirit yearns to share — 
Say, Brothers, say, is there room I 

With God's own eye above, 
With Brother-hands below, 
With Friendship and with Love. 
My pilgrimage I'll go ; 
And when in death's embrace, 
My summons it shall come, 
Within your heart's best place, 
Oh, Brothers, oh give me room ! 



CIjc (Bwdsmwct. 



From me to thee, from me to 

Each whispering leaf a missive be, 
In mystic scent and hue to say — 

This green and fragrant spray — 
In emerald green and rich perfume, 

To teach of Faith that mocks the tomb, 
And link the chain Fidelity, 

'Twist, Brother, thee and me ! 

In distant land, in olden time, 

The Acacia bore the mark sublime, 

And told to each discerning eye 
Of deathless constancy : 



MASONIC TRAINING. 

So may these green leaves whisper now, 
Inform the heart, inspire the vow, 

And link the chain Fidelity, 
'Twixt, Brother, thee and me ! 



Oh ! Ladies, when you bend above, 
The cradled offspring of your love, 
And bless the child whom you would se 
A man of truth and constancy, — 
Believe, there is in Masons' lore, 
A fund of wisdom, beauty, power, 
Enriching every soul of man 
"Who comprehends the mystic plan. 

Then train your boy in Mason's truth ; 
Lay deep the cornerstone in youth ; 
Teach him to walk by virtue's line, 
To square his acts by square Divine ; 
The cement of pure love to spread, 
And paths of Scripture-truth to tread ; 
Then will the Touth to manhood grow 
To honor us and honor you. 



Jab I Sk&ll ghurcklll 

Ask, and ye shall receive ; 

Seek, ye shall surely find ; 
Knock, ye shall no resistance meet, 

If come with ready mind ; 
For all that ask, and ask aright, 
Are welcome to our lodge to-night. 

Lay down the bow and spear; 

Resign the sword and shield ; 
Forget the art's of warfare here, 

The arms of peace to wield ; 
For all that seek, and seek aright, 
Are welcome to our lodge to-night. 

Bring hither thoughts of peace ; 

Bring hither words of love ; 
Diffuse the pure and holy joy 

That cometh from above ; 
For all that knock, and knock aright, 
Are welcome to our lodge to-night. 

Ask help of HrM that's high ; 

Seek grace of Him that's true ; 
Knock patiently, the hand is nigh, 

Will open unto you ; 
For all that ask, seek, knock aright, 
Are welcome to our lodge to-night. 



Htas0nk ^itltr-Sanjg-Sgiu. 



A society whose ceremonies and language extend so far into an- 
tiquity as those of Freemasonry, may justly claim, more than others, 
to be the conservator of old things. Nowhere are aged men so prized 
as in lodges of Freemasons. The models of lodge furniture, to the 
smallest piece, are of ancient patterns, and their lectures and their 
songs, and their hopes, all breathe the spirit so well expressed in the 
Scotch phrase, " Auld Lang Syne." The following lines, much used 
in the gatherings of the Craft, may be accompanied in recitation 
with significant gestures. 

We do not sigh for pleasures past, 

Nor fondly, vainly pine ; 
Yet let us give one memory 

To Auld Lang Syne. 

With Gavel, Trowel, Guage, we work, 

With Level, Square, and Line ; 
Come, join the Chain of Love, and sing 

Of Auld Lang Syne ! 
For Auld Lang Syne, my dear, 

For Auld Lang Syne ; 
Ah, who like us can sing the days 

Of Auld Lang Syne ! 



'Twas sweet when evening's shadows fell — 
How bright our Lights did shine ! 

Down from the East to hear the words 
Of Auld Lang Syne. 

41 



42 TEARS AND SMILES. 

The 'Prentice knocked with trembling hand, 
The Crapt sought Corn and Wine, 

The Master stood, and nobly fell, 
In Auld Lang Syne. 

"With step so true, with form upright, 
We drew the Grand Design; 

'Twas well we knew " to square the work," 
In Auld Lang Syne. 

A tear to them, the early dead, 
Fond memory would consign ; 

We dropped the green sprig o'er their head, 
In Auld Lang Syne. 

And till the Master call us hence 

To join the Lodge Divine, 
Let's sometimes give a grateful thought 

To Auld Lang Syne 1 



Cjears rmb Smiles. 

The tear for friends departed, 
The faithful and true-hearted, 

Cast midst the rubbish of the silent grave, 
Is changed to smiles of pleasure, 
While trusting that our treasure, 

A glorious Resurrection-day will have ! 



|Jmt£ ghmttis. 



It is written of a venerable Craftsman of the past generation, that, 
having lived through all the trials and reproaches of the Antimasonic 
period (1826-1836), and maintained his membership first in one lodge 
and then in another, 'as the contiguous lodges successively gave way 
under the pressure, he came peacefully to his death-bed at last, and, 
smilingly said to the friends who thronged about his bed-side, 
" Now, Brothers, let me have my demit !" 

In the oldest system of Masonic ethics extant, it is distinctly 
averred that " every Brother ought to belong to a lodge." The prac- 
tice of non-affiliation so common at the present day, is thus stamped 
as unmasonic. Death alone should sever lodge-affiliation. 

" Now dismiss rue, while I linger, 

For one fond, one dear word more ; 
Have I done my labor fairly ? 

Is there aught against my score ? 
Have I wronged in all this circle, 

One by deed, or word, or blow ? — 
Silence speaks my full acquittance — 

Nunc dimittis, let me go ! 

" Let me go, I crave my wages ; 

Long I've suffered, long I've toiled ; 
Never once through work days idle, 

Never once my apron soiled ; 
In the Chamber, where the Master 

"Waits with smiling to bestow 
Corn, and wine, and oil abundant, 

Nunc dimittis, let me go ! 



44 NUNC DIMITTIS, 

" Let me go, but you must tarry, 

Till the Sixth day's close has come : 
Heat and burden patient bear ye 

While you're absent far from home ; 
But a little for the summons 

"Waits alike for each of you ; — 
Mine is sounding, spirits wait me, 

Nunc dirnittis, let me go ! 

" Oh, the Sabbath-day in Heaven ! 

Oh, the joys reserved for them, 
Faithful Builders of the Temple, 

Type of blest Jerusalem ! 
Oh, the raptures of the meeting 

With the friends 'twas bliss to know ! 
Strive no longer to detain me, 

Nunc dirnittis, let me go !" 

Hushed that voice its fond imploring ; 

Faded is that eager eye ; 
Gone the soul of labor wearied, 

To repose eternally : 
But the memory of his service 

Oft shall lighten up our woe, 
Till the hour we too petition — 

"Nunc dirnittis, let me go !" 



Sfttfgttmjj Dtocfas. 



None of the ancient Masonic legends are more graceful or convey 
a more charmingly esoteric meaning, than that which assures us there 
is for an hour after the Brethren disperse from their lodge-room a 
mysterious echo of sounds which may be heard there, weird, lingering, 
fraternal in tone, made up, in fact, of all the brotherly expressions 
and divine acknowledgments that have passed about the group through 
the entire convocation ! It is affirmed by those who have the gift to 
understand it, to be charming beyond expression, and that the last 
note, as it dies away upon the ear, is the echo of that spirit which 
filled the soul of our Patron Saint, the Evangelist John — " Love !" 

Lingering notes the echoes stir, 
Soft and sweet, these walls along ; 

Softly, sweetly, they concur 
In the pleasant tide of song ; 

Night-birds cease their plaintive lays 

Listening to the hymn of praise. 

Angels gliding through the air, 

On celestial mission bent, 
Pause, the sacred hymn to hear — i 

Fold their wings in soft content — 
Join their notes divine to these, 
Hymning Masons' mysteries. 

Now the solitary room, 

Peopled with a countless throng — 

Now the stillness and the gloom 
Kindle with the tide of song, 

Filling our delighted ears — 

Music of three thousand years ! 



40 THE GIVING OF THE SHO 

Every Emblem pictured there, 
On the ceiling, wall, or floor — 

Gavel, Trowel, Apron, Square, 
Column rent or open Door — 

Blends a light and yields a tongue, 

To this softly-lingering song. 

Now the anthem dies away ; 

One by one the voices cease ; 
Birds resume their wonted lay ; 

Angels on their mission press ; 
But the latest note that moves 
In the mystic song is Love's ! 



Take this pledge ! it is a token 
Of that truth that ne'er was broken, 
Truth which binds the Mystic Tie, 
Under the All-Seeing Eye. 

Take this pledge ! each ancient Brother, 
By this type bound every other 
Firmly, so that death, alone, 
Rent the bonds that made them one. 

Take this pledge ! no pledge so holy ; 
Though the symbol seem but lowly, 
'Tis divine ! It tells of One, 
Of the rain-drops and the sun. 



NSCRIPTIONS FOR A LODGE-ROOM. 47 

Take this pledge ! the token sealeth 
All the judgment-day revealeth ; 
Honor, Truth, fraternal Grace, 
Brother, in thy hands I place ! 



EAST. 

Erect before thee, 

A hand upon thy "Word, 
We thus adore thee 

And swear to serve thee, Lord ! 

WEST. 

So mote it be — each murmuring word 
Speaks the soul's earnest, deep accord, 
And echoes, from its inmost sea, 
A deep " Amen, so mote it be !" 

SOUTH. 

Ye faithful, weave the chain ! 

Join hand in hand again ! 
The world is filled with violence and blood ! 

Hark to the battle-cry ! 

Hark to the answering sigh ! 
Come weave the chain that's blest of man and God ! 



Sfct f xUars of % f ortlj. 

An innovation upon the Masonic landmarks is like removing one 
of the emblems from the Pillars at the entrance of the Temple. It 
is Masonic sacrilege. Every instructed brother will set himself reso- 
lutely against such an act, remembering the declaration in the ancient 
books of our Order : " It is not in the power of any man or body of 
men to make innovations in the body of Masonry." In this lie the 
strength and the establishment of the Order. 

The Old is better : is it not the plan 

By which the wise, in by-gone days, contrived 
To bind in willing fetters man to man, 

And strangers in a sacred nearness lived ? 
Is there in modern wisdom aught like that 

Which, midst the blood and carnage of the plain, 
Can calm man's fury, mitigate his hate, 

And join disrupted friends in love again ? 

No ! for three thousand years the smiles of heaven, 

Smiles on whose sunbeams comes unmeasured joy, 
To this thrice-honored Cement have been given, 

This Bond, this Covenant, this sacred Tie : 
It comes to us full laden : from the Tomb 

A countless host conspire to name its worth, 
Who sweetly sleep beneath th' Acacia's bloom, — 

And there is nought like Masonry on earth. 

Then guard the venerable relic well ; 

Protect it, Masters, from th' unholy hand ; 
See that its emblems the same lessons tell 

Sublime through every age and every land ; 

48 



CHERISHING THE PLEDGE. 49 

Be not a line erased ; the pen that drew 
These matchless tracings was the Pen DrvrNE ; — 

Infinite Wisdom best for mortals knew — 
God will preserve intact the Grand Design. 



Cjjnhbinij % Jplebge. 



During the Civil War, the question, How far the Masonic obliga- 
tions extend to those in arms against their country, has perplexed 
many. The following Ode is proposed as the ancient and sure solution 
of the difficulty. The Ancient Charges, it will be found, leave no 
room for doubt upon the subject. 

It would be criminal here to omit to state the fact that through all 
the strife which has deluged the land in blood, while other bonds and 
covenants have been nullified, the Bond of Freemasonry has remained 
intact ! 

Dear Friends of the Square let us cherish our faith, 
Though broken and torn every other ! 
Bemember the vow ; — we swore unto death 
We would cling, hand and heart, to a Brother ! 
Then raise up to God the left hand ! 

With mine join the other ! 
Though war blow the blast, and with death strew the land, 
We swear to be true to each Brother ! 

The East lends his light, though the world is at war ; 
The South shines in glory and beauty ; 
The West gently smiles o'er fields drenched in gore — 
They teach to each Mason his duty ! 



50 LET Y OV R LIGHT SHINE. 

The Badge of the Craft is unsullied as yet — 
From war's dust and blood let us fold it ! 
The Page of our History is brilliant with light \-> 
Let's swear thus in honor to hold it ! 

Great God ! from thy Throne view the nation at strife I 
Thy Gavel must heal this disorder ! 
Send Peace o'er the land ! give Refuge and Life ! 
Be Thou Lord our Saviour and Warder ! 
Then raise up to God the left hand ! 

With mine join the other ! 
Though war blow the blast, and with death strew the land, 
We swear to be true to each Brother ! 



tA four f iojjt ^™*> 

" Let your light shine," the Master said,- 

" To bless benighted man ! 
The light and truth my Spirit shed 

Are yours to shed again." 

We come, oh Lord, with willing mind, 
That knowledge to display ; 

Enlighten us, by nature blind, 
And glad we will obey. 



By one God created, by one Saviour saved, 
By one Spirit lighted, by one mark engraved, 
"We're taugbt in the wisdom our spirits approve, 
To cherish the spirit of Brotherly love. 

Love, love, Brotherly love — 
This world has no spirit like Brotherly love. 

In the land of the stranger we Masons abide, 
In forest, in quarry, on Lebanon's side ; 
Yon temple we're building, its plan's from above, 
And we labor supported by Brotherly love. 

Though the service be hard, and the wages be scant, 
If the Master accept it, our hearts are content : 
The prize that we toil for, we'll have it above, 
When the Temple's completed, in Brotherly love. 

Yes, yes, though the week may be long, it will end, — 
Though the temple be lofty, the keystone will stand : 
And the Sabbath, blest day, every thought will remove, 
Save the mem'ry fraternal of Brotherly love. 

By one God created, — come, brothers, 'tis day ! 
By one Spirit lighted — come, brothers, away ! 
"With Beauty, and Wisdom, and Strength to approve, 
Let's toil while there's labor in Brotherly love. 

51 



Cjr* Jfe 0f Jfrimtrsbtp. 



Nothing in the Masonic institution is more practical or more grate- 
ful to the sensibilities of the traveling-brother than to find, as he will 
do in every lodge in this country an officer whose constitutional duty 
it is " to welcome and accommodate visiting brethren." This makes 
the circle of the Order complete, for every well-informed brother has 
a claim and a right to the hospitalities of lodges wherever he may 
travel or work. The following lines represent the sentiments of grati- 
tude which such an one may be supposed to feel upon the reception of 
that broad and unreserved welcome peculiar to the Masonic system. 



Men of the bright inheritance, oh true and loving band, 
Who, linked in chains of Masonry, around this altar stand, 
Bright let the fire op Friendship burn and warmly let it glow,. 
For a stranger from a distant land would join your circle now. 

The Acacia blooms in every clime, the Broken Shaft doth 

rear 
Its mournful form in mystic guise, and meets us everywhere ; 
The Gavel rings o'er land and sea, yon Emblem speaks the same, 
About the globe, as here it speaks, the Universal Name. 

And why ? because One God we have in whom alone we trust ; 
He made us all, Our Father made us all of kindred dust ; 
The same green Mother Earth, the broad, the generous he 

gave, 
That feeds us while we live and gives us when we die, a grave. 



WORDS OF PEACE AND LOVE. 53 

We build a common Temple too, the lofty and the low, 
We bring the same heart-offerings and in common homage bow ; 
Our Tracing-Board the same designs in every clime has given, 
And, serving the same Master, we expect the same bright 
Heaven. 

Then let the stranger have a place within your mystic band, 
Where eye responsive answers eye, and hand unites with hand ; 
He knows your Word, he knows your Sign, he asks no better 

grace 
Than with you here to sit awhile and greet you face to face. 

Peace in the lodges where you work be heaven's boon to-day ; 
Peace, Peace; — it is the yearning prayer the stranger's heart 

would pray ; 
And could they hear it from the land and from the rolling sea, 
Prom every Mason's lips would come the cry, So mote it be ! 



Moths at $ ma aitir Jfabt. 

Now, while the Thunder-peal of battle is heard, 
Earth with the trampling of legions is stirred, 
Turn from the Battle, Brothers, take from above, 
Words op Peace and Love ! 
Hearts of consolation, bide ye the vow ! 
Hands, never weary in charity now ! 
Tongues rich in sympathy, oh take from above 
Words of Peace and Love. 



54 the pilgrim's home. 

Blood like a river flowing, smokes o'er the plain ; 
Tears, bitter weeping — oh, who can refrain ! 
Stay, stay the slaughter, Brothers, stay this distress, 
Speak the Words of Peace ! 

Thus speaks the Trowel, Brothers, thus speaks the Line,. 
Thus speaks the Compass and Symbol Divine ; 
Each bears its message on the white wings of Peace, 
Bids all warrings cease. 



re ^pilgrim's Jtome, 



In the " Life in the Triangle," is described a Masonic Burial at 
night, of which this Ode forms a part. Four members of the frater- 
nity, who resided in an intensely antimasonic community, had discov- 
ered the body of a man upon whose garments was seen the mystic em- 
blem of the Order. This they had carefully enshrouded and provided 
with a coffin. At night, with every precaution against interruption, 
they took it to the village graveyard and interred it, with the songs 
and the signs, and the circuits prescribed by the time-honored 



Bear him home, his bed is made 
In the stillness, in the shade ; 
Day has parted, night has come, 
Bear the Brother to his home — 
Bear him home. 



THE PILGR 



HOME. 55 



Bear him home, no more to roam, 
Bear the tired Pilgrim home ; 
Forward ! all his toils are o'er — 
Home where journeying is no more — 
Bear him home. 

Lay him down ; his bed is here ; 
See the dead are resting near ! 
Brothers they their Brothers own, 
Lay the wanderer gently down — 
Lay him down. 

Lay him down ; let nature spread 
Starry curtains o'er the dead ; 
Lay him down ; let angel eyes 
View him kindly from the skies — 
Lay him down. 

Ah, not yet for us the bed, 
Where the faithful Pilgrim's lain ! 
Pilgrims weep, again to go 
Through life's weariness and woe — 
Ah, not yet ! 

Soon 'twill come, if faithful here, 
Soon the end of all our care ; 
Strangers here, we seek a Home, 
Friends and Saviour in the tomb — 
Soon 'twill come. 



56 HYMN FOR CONSECRATION. 

Let us go, and on our way 
Faithful journey, faithful pray ; 
Through the sunshine, through the snow, 
Boldly, Brother Pilgrims, go — 
Let us go. 



Jptimtt for €onsumtxan, 

Lo, God is here, our prayers prevail ! 
In deeper reverence adore ; 
Ask freely now ! he will not fail 
His largest, richest gifts to pour. 

Ask by these Emblems old and true ; 
Ask by the memories of the past ; 
Ask by His own Great Name, for lo, 
His every promise there is cast ! 

Ask Wisdom ! 'tis the chiefest thing : 

Ask Strength, such strength as God may yield ; 

Ask Beauty from his Throne to spring 

And grace the Temple we shall build. 

Lord God most high, our Lodge we veil ! 
'Tis consecrate with ancient care ; 
Oh let thy Spirit ever dwell, 
And guide the loving Builders here ! 



Cftt Wfyik-xijiixan&b §r0%rs. 



And he said unto me, What are these which are arrayed in white 
robes, and whence came they ? And I said unto him, Sir, thou know- 
est. And he said unto me, These are they which came out of great 
tribulation, and have washed their robes, and hare made them white in 
the blood of the Lamb. 

Therefore are they before the throne of God, aud serve him day 
and night in his temple ; and he that sitteth on the throne shall dwell 
among them. 

They shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more ; neither 
shall the sun light on them nor any heat. 

For the Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them, 
and shall lead them unto living fountains of waters ; and God shall 
wipe away all tears from their eyes. — Rev. vii., 13-17. 



Come cease from your labors, 
Ye white-aproned neighbors, 

And answer my words — 
Tell us who are ye t 
We are friends of humanity, 
Hating profanity, 
Spurning all vanity, 

Children of peace — 

Men who can feel 
All our own need of kindness, 

And bless the Great God, 
Who hath lightened our blindness." 



58 THE WHITE-APRONED BROTHERS. 

Tell us, what do ye ? 
" By precept, example, 
We're building a temple, 
Fair, lofty and ample 

For Him whom we serve — 
Following the plans 
That our Master doth give us, 

And amply repaid 
When His servants receive us." 

And what do you work with ? 
" The Gage and the Gavel, 
The Plumb, Square and Level, 
And then as we travel, 

The Trowel we hold- 
Skillfully these, 
As first we're inducted — 

Obediently these, 
In the way we're instructed." 

Tour timbers, what are they ? 
" The blocks that we quarry, 
And timbers so heavy, 
Our hands shape and carry, 
Those ashlars are men ; 
Rough ashlars they are — 
But hewed, marked and garnished, 

By precepts divine, 
Our task will be finished." 



HOURS OF PRAISE. 59 

Your resting, when is it ? 
We look for no leisure, 
"We sigli for no pleasure, 
"We covet no treasure, 

Till Saturday night — 

"Wages and joys, 
And a rest without breaking, 

Wait for us then, 
In the home that we're seeking." 



gxrars jof |)rais*. 

Morn, the morn, sweet morn is springing ; 

In the East his sign appears ; 
Dews, and songs, and fragrance flinging 

Down the new robe nature wears. 
Forth from slumber, forth and meet him ! 

"Who too dead to love and light ? 
Forth, and as you stand to greet him, 

Praise to Hut who giveth night. 

Noon, the noon, high noon is glowing ; 

In the South rich glories burn ; 
Beams intense from Heaven are flowing ; 

Mortal eye must droop and turn. 



60 HOURS OF PRAISE. 

Forth and meet him ! while the chorus 
Of the groves is nowhere heard, 

Kneel to Him who bendeth o'er us — 
Praise with heart and willing word. 

Eve, the eve, still eve is weeping ; 

In the West she dies away ; 
Every winged one is sleeping — 

They've no life but open day. 
Forth and meet her ! lo, she lends us 

Thrice ten thousand brilliants high ! 
Glory to His name who sends us 

Such night-jewels from the sky. 

Death, pale death, to all is certain ; 

From the grave his voice comes up — 
" Fearless raise my gloomy curtain — 

Find within, eternal hope " : 
Forth and meet Him, ye whose duty 

To the Lord of Life is given : 
He will clothe death's garb with beauty- 

He will give a path to Heaven. 



Cl>* gging Pcpx. 



Algernon Sydney was executed on the scaffold, Dec. 1, 1683. 
Having ended his devotions, he placed his head, unassisted, on the 
block. Being asked by the headsman, according to custom, " Sir, will 
you rise again ?" he answered promptly and unfalteringly, " Not till 
the general Resurrection ! Strike on !" 

On the verge of Eternity, calmly surveying 

The dark-rolling waters that threatened beneath, 

The martyr op liberty ended his praying, 
And patiently waited the signal of death ; 

His head on the block, but his spirit away, 

In the land where the tyrant shall forfeit his sway. 

The words of his lips, how undaunted and cheering ! 

They spoke of a victory grand and complete ; 
They told that this mortal, whom despots were fearing, 

Though conquered by wrong, was the conquerer yet — 
" The grave cannot hold me ! the dust shall be won 
From the worm and the darkness of nature ! strike on !" 



How mighty that hope, when the spirit departing, 
Must sunder the ties that have bound it so long, 

To feel that this tenement we are deserting, 

Shall rise to new glories thro' Jesus the Strong ! 

The grave cannot hold us ! the flesh shall be won 

From the worm and the darkness of nature ! strike on ! 

61 



62 



Ah, yes ! and each flaw that the eye has detected, 
While occupied here shall be covered above ; 

Renewed by the same glorious hand that erected, 
These Temples shall all be made perfect in love ; 

The grave shall not hold us — this flesh shall be won 

From the worm and the darkness of nature ! stbike on ! 

Then cheer Brothers, cheer ! for why should death alarm us ! 

A brief separation the monster will bring ; 
His pangs will afford, though a moment they harm us, 

A glorious reunion thro' Jesus the King ! 
The grave shall not hold us — this flesh shall be won 
From the worm and the darkness of nature ! strike on ! 



In the eleventh chapter of Nehemiah, the expression " Ono, the 
valley of Craftsmen " occurs, which forms the subject of the following 
lines: 

Where is the true heart's Mother-Lodge ? 
Is't where, perchance he earliest heard 
The frightful voice, from rocky ledge, 
That told a horrid deed of blood ? 
Is't where his vision earliest saw, 
And hands enclasped that Golden Thing, 
The symbol-crowned, the wondrous Law, 
Noblest creation of our King ? 



PLEDGE TO A DYING BROTHER. 63 

No : though in fancy he may turn, 
In pleasing reminiscence back, 
As happiest hearts at times, will yearn, 
To tread again youth's flowery track, — 
The true heart's Mother-Lodge is found 
Where truest, fondest hearts conspire 
To draw love's deathless chain around, 
And kindle up love's deathless fire. 

Methinks that here, dear Friends, must be, 

Ono, the Craftsmen's happy Vale, 

And you, true Laborer, brave and free 

The Master in the peaceful dale ! 

So let me fancy and when bowed 

In daily adorations due, 

I will entreat the Masons' God 

To bless the Craftsmen here, and you ! 



We'll lay thee down when thou shalt sleep, 

All tenderly and brotherly ; 
And woman's eyes with ours shall weep 

The precious drops of sympathy : 
We'll spread above thee cedar boughs 

Whose emerald hue and rich perfume 
Shall make thee deem thy resting-place 

A balmy bed and not a tomb. 



64 PLEDGE TO A DYING BROTHER, 

That teeming breast which has supplied 

Thy wants from earliest infancy. 
Shall open fondly and supply 

Unbroken rest and sleep to thee : 
Each spring the flower roots shall send up 

Their painted emblems toward the sky, 
To bid thee wait, within thy couch, 

A little longer patiently. 

We'll not forget thee, we who stay 

To work a little longer here ; 
Thy name, thy faith, thy love shall lie 

On memory's page all bright and clear ; 
And when o'erwearied by the toil 

Of life, our heavy limbs shall be, 
We'll come and one by one lie down 

Upon dear mother-earth with thee. 

And there we'll slumber by thy side ; 

There, reunited 'neath the sod 
We'll wait, nor doubt in His good time 

To feel the raising-hand of God ! 
To be translated from the earth, 

This land of sorrow and complaints, 

To the ALL-PERFECT LODGE ABOVE 

Whose Master is the King of Saints. 



% f 00k to % §xxmt 

Yes, in yon world of perfect light, 
The wearied soul at last may rest ; 

No higher, farther, wings its flight, 
Brought to the glories of the East. 

There is the long-sought boon divine, 
And worthy of the painful quest ; 

When evening shades of life decline, 
The day is dawning in the East. 

Who feels this truth in fervent heart, 
May know his last hours are his best ; 

How joyful from the West to part 

When calls the Master from the East. 

Join hearts and hands in union dear — 

Jesus has sanctified the test ; 
Life's chain is only broken here 

To join forever in the East. 

Mourners, your tears with gladness blend ! 

Joy, Brothers, joy, our faith's confessed ! 
The grave will yield our parted friend, 

When we with him approach the East. 



fkamr— #ral ox g>tml 

There is a prayer unsaid — 
No lips its accents move ; 
'Tis uttered by the pleading eye, 
And registered above. 



Each mystic sign is prayer, 
By hand of Mason given ; 
Each gesture pleads or imprecates 
And is observed in heaven. 

The deeds that mercy prompts, 
Are prayers in sweet disguise ; 
Though unobserved by any here, 
They're witnessed in the skies. 

Then at the altar kneel — 

In silence make thy prayer ; 

And He whose very name is Love 

The plea will surely hear. 

The darkest road is light — 
"We shun the dangerous snare, 
When heavenly hand conducts the road, 
Eesponsive to our prayer. 



% Sang d Si $0^ 

How blest is the home 
Where the Brotherhood come ! 

How charming the time and occasion 1 
The love that was bom, 
In the heart of Saint John, 

Now warms up the heart of each Mason. 

It is you, Sir, and you, 

Friendly Brothers and true, 
No matter what may be your station — 

On the level our way, 

"We are equal to-day, 
For I, Sirs, with you, am a Mason ! 

This love that was born, 

In the heart of St. John, 
Is the bond of a charming connexion ; 

Through good, and through ill, 

It abides with us still, 
And makes us thanh God wdre a Mason. 

When in the Lodge met, 

And the officers set, 
'Tis of duty and pleasure the season, 

Ah ! gladly is given 

To the Father in Heaven, 
The praises devout of each Mason. 



THE SONG OF ST. JOHN. 

When labor is done, 

And the Brotherhood gone, 
Do yon think that our secrets we blazon ? 

No ! no, 'tis the joy 

Of our mystic employ, 
That we tell them to none but a Mason. 

For 'tis this we do learn, 
From our patron St. John, 
The pride of this charming occasion, 
That the tongue that conceals, 
And never reveals, 

Is THE VERY BEST THING FOR A MASON ! 

Then Lady and Sir, 

"While we stoutly aver, 
In our Secrets we'll never work treason, 

The rules we profess, 

Are the same that did grace 
Our patron St. John, the Freemason. 

And while to his name, 

We may boldly lay claim, 
To his graces we'll cling till death's season, 

And then to the bourne, 

Where his spirit has gone, 
We'll hie us like every good Mason. 



&xxhnh to Wi%sfyngtmx> 

Ho ! Brothers of the mystic Tie, 

Come round me if you please ! 
Lay down the gavel and the square, 

And let the trowel cease ; 
The work may stop a little while— 

The Master will not blame, 
While I from memory sing of one 

Eight worthy of the name, — 
A true old-time Freemason 
Whose name was Washington ! 

Of every superfluity 

He did his mind divest ; 
He would not set a timber up 

Unless it was the best : 
He plumbed, and squared, and leveled well 

His blocks, and set them true ; 
Then turned his apron Master- wise 

And spread the mortar due — 
This true old-time Freemason 
Whose name was Washington ! 

When bloody war at foreign hands, 

His country threatened sore, 
He thought it right to take the sword, 

And guard his native shore ; 



70 THE BROKEN COLUMN. 

He s':ood where bravest hearts are found- 
He struck for liberty ; 
But when the conquered foemen sued, 
A man of mercy he — 

This true old-time Freemason, 
The glorious "Washington. 

Upon his Apron was no stain ; 

His work had no defect ; 
The Overseer accepted all, 

There was nothing to reject. 
He lived in peace with God and man; 

He died in glorious hope, 
That Christ, the Lion, Judah's pride, 

Would raise his body up — 
This true old-time Freemason, 
Ottr Brother Washington. 



Cjre §rohm Column. 

" His Work was not done, yet his Column is broken ;" 
Mourn ye and weep, for ye cherished his worth ; 
Let every tear-drop be sympathy's token, — 
Lost to the Brotherhood, lost to the earth. 

His Work had been planned by a Wisdom Supernal ; 
Strength had been given him meet for the same ; 
Down in the midst he is fallen, and vernal 
Leaves hang above him and whisper his fame. 



A mason's epitaph. 71 

His Work was to Build ; on the walls we beheld him — 
Swiftly and truly they rose 'neath his hand; 
Envious death with his Gavel has felled him, 
Plumb-line and Trowel are strewn o'er the land. 

His Work thus unfinished to us is entrusted ; 
Master of Masons, give strength we entreat, 
Bravely to work with these Implements rusted, 
"Wisely to build till the Temple's complete ! 



ton's (Bpxtapjj. 



His epitaph a Mason true and good, 
Sincere in friendship, ready in relief, 
Discreet in trusts, faithful in Brotherhood, 
Tender in sympathy and kind in grief. 

On grateful memories his name is writ ; 
His genial heart our hearts did kindle up ; 
We drew our inspiration from his light 
And buoyancy from his all-buoyant hope. 

Mis toils are ended ; we must labor on : 

Our Master for a little longer calls 

Our hands to duty at the rising sun, 

Our hearts to rest when evening: shadow falls. 



72 DEATH, THE CELESTIAL GATE. 

But 'twill be ended soon ; may our reward 

Be upon hearts like his to lie secure ; 

Like him to enjoy the favor of the Lobd, 

Whose grace is boundless and whose promise sure. 



gmtjj, tin Celestial (Safe. 

By the pallid hue of those 
Whose sweet blushes mocked the ros 
By the fixed, unmeaning eye, 
Sparkled once so cheerfully — 

By the cold damps on the brow- 
By the tongue, discordant now — 
By the gasp and laboring breath, 
What ! oh tell us, what is death ! 

By the vacancy of heart, 
Where the lost one had a part — 
By the yearning to retrieve 
Treasures hidden in the grave — 

By the future, hopeless all, 
Wrapped as in a funeral pall — 
By the links that rust beneath, 
What ! oh tell us, what is death/ 



LESTIAL GATE. 73 



By the echoes swelled around, 
Sigh and moan and sorrow-sound — 
By the grave that, opened nigh, 
Cruel, yields us no reply — 

By the silent king, whose dart 
Seeks and finds the mortal part, 
We may know, no human breath 
Can inform vs what is death ! 

But the grave has spoken loud ! 
Once was raised the pallid shroud ; 
When the stone was rolled away — 
When the earth, in frenzy's play — 

Shook her pillars to awake 
Him who suffered for our sake ; 
When the vail's deep fissure showed 
All the mysteries of God ! 

Tell us, then, thou grave of hope, 
What is He that breaks thee up ? 
" Mortal, from my chambers dim, 
Christ arose, inquire of him !" 

Hark, unto the earnest cry, 
Notes celestial make reply ! 
" Christian, unto thee 'tis given — 
Death's a passage unto Heaven !" 



gums' JwrfwII. 



sung by Professor John C. Baker, the vocalist, there is a pathos 
in Burns' celebrated Ode that is irresistible. 



Never since 'neath the daisies laid 
Burns joined the cold and tuneless dead, 
Were those sweet lines, his noblest flight, 
Sung as you sung them o'er last night. 

They bore us, fancy -winged, above ; 
They thrilled the inmost soul with love ; 
And tears confessed " The fond Adieu " 
As sung so well, last night, by you. 

Ah what a thing is this to spread, 
That binds the living with the dead, 
And makes them one fraternal throng 
As you, last night, so justly sung ! 

How blest are we who rightly claim 
The Masons' heart, the Masons' name, 
And see " the Hieroglyphic bright " 
Of which you sung, so well, last night ! 

Then as you journey sweetly sing; 

Let craftsmen hear that tuneful thing ; 

No better can the pen indite 

Than those sweet words you sung last night. 



THE CRESCENT. 75 

And when your own High XII. has come, 
And craftsmen bear you, weeping, home, 
May loving friends your requiem write 
Like those grand words you sung last night ! 



Addressed to Crescent Lodge, No. 402, City of New York. 

Growing, Growing still in ntjmbers, 
Still in living stones of strength ; 

Some on earth, and some in Heaven, 
Where you may arrive at length : 

While the Moon its horns shall fill, 

" Crescent " be your motto still ! 

Growing, Growing still in wisdom, 

Light still breaking day by day, 
Sacred light from yonder volume 

Leading to the perfect way ! 
While the Moon its horns shall fill, 
" Crescent" be your motto still ! 

Growing, Growing still in honor, 

Still in that good men pursue ; 
Honest reputation gilding 

Every gracious deed you do ; 
While the Moon its horns shall fill, 
" Crescent" be your motto still ! 



76 DUTIES OF THE CRAFT. 

Growing, Growing still in goodness, 
Drawing daily still toward Heaven ; 

All the emblems glowing 'round you 
For that very purpose given — 

While the Moon its horns shall fill, 

" Crescent " be your motto still ! 

Growing, Growing : — Men of " Crescent," 
May your growing never cease, 

While there is a vice to chasten, 
Or a sorrowing heart to bless ! 

'Till your fullness you shall see 

Dawning on Eternity ! 



gwtus 0f the €mit 



To afford succor to the distressed, to divide our bread with the in- 
dustrious poor, and put the misguided traveler in the way, are duties 
of the craft, suitable to its dignity, and expressive of its usefulness. 

Come and let us seek the straying, 

Lead him to the Shepherd back ; 
Come, the traveler's feet betraying, 

Guide him from the dangerous track ; 
Come, a solemn voice reminds us — 
Come, a mystic fetter binds us — 

Masons, here your duties lie, 

Hark the poor and needy cry ! 



V E P. D A N T , FRAGRANT, ENDURING. 77 

Come and help the worthy poor 

Starving for the needed bread ; 
From your well-replenished store 

Let the fellow-man be fed ! 
Bounties God to you supplieth 
To the poor he oft denieth. 

Come where sorrow has its dwelling, 

Comfort bring to souls distressed ; 
To the friendless mourner telling, 

Of the Rock that offers rest ; 
What would life be but for heaven 2 
Come, to us the Word is given. 

Band of Brothers, every nation 

Hails your bright and orient light 1 

Fervent, zealous, free, your station 
Calls for deeds of noblest might ! 

Seek — the world is full of sorrow — 

Act — your life will end to-morrow. 



fefrmtt, Jfragrmtt, feSmnttg, 

Green, but far greener is the Faith 
That gives us victory over death. 
Fragrant, more fragrant far the Hope 
That buoys our dying spirits up. 
Enduring, but the Charity 
That Masons teach will never die. 



JfrtCrsioI* : % %txi of |)*aa. 

Far away in the West, where the savage is straying, 

His war path all gory, his visage begrimed, 
Where man hates his fellow, betrayed and betraying, 

And nature alone breathes a spirit sublimed — 
There's a Fountain whose flow sweet as nectar inviteth, 

Embosomed in hills such as Eden adorn : — 
Each sip of its waters to Friendship inciteth 

And Peace is the song that its song-birds return. 

There met, drops the Savage his hatchet and arrow, 

There met, breast to breast, joins in fondest embrace : 
From the song-birds the foemen sweet carolings borrow, 

And war paint the waters wash out from each face : 
The hills smile around — 'tis the approval of Heaven — 

Their light catches, glances in every eye, 
And speaks of a host of foul insults forgiven, 

And pledges a Covenant that never can die. 

The Lodge is a Peace-fount ! come, Brothers, and taste it I 

Overflowing with sweetness, to you it is given ! 
A Rock its Foundation — what ages have placed it ! 

Its Covering, the starry-decked arches of Heaven. 
Its Law, 'tis inscribed in yon holiest Volume — 

Its Chain, every link is the soul of a Man ! 
Behold on the right hand and left hand its Column I 

Behold in the East is its marvelous Plan ! 

73 



0ta for n Wimhx gtstitoaL. 

Friends ever dear, begin the opening lay ; 

Chant ye of joys that none but Masons know ; 
Heart answering heart, love's secret power display, 
Gain from our rites a blessing e'er we go. 
Love reigneth here — Love reigneth here ; 
Hate has the rule without, 
But love reigneth here. 

Bleak blows the wind : the sky with angry storms, 

Glares on the traveler as he flits along; 
Here genial fire, the fire of Friendship warms, 
Here gleams the eye, here tunes the jocund song : 
Love reigneth here : Love reigneth here ; 
Bleak storms may blow without, 
But Love reigneth here. 

Sadness and care — our life is full of these ; 

"Tis but a strife, a turmoil at the best ; 
Here all is calm ; our walls we build in peace ; 
Here one short hour the weary heart may rest. 
Love reigneth here — Love reigneth here ; 
Sadness and care without, 
But love reigneth here. 



)t ($immr rjf JJife. 



Darkly hid beneath the quarry, 

Masons, many a true block lies ; 

Hands must shape and hands must carry, 

Ere the stone the Master prize. 

Seek for it — measure it — 

Fashion it — polish it ! 

Then the Overseer will prize. 

What though shapeless, rough and heavy, 

Think ye God his work will lose ? 
Raise the block with strength he gave ye ; 
Fit it for the Master's use. 
Seek for it — measure it — 
Fashion it — polish it ! 
Then the Overseer will use. 

'Twas for this our Fathers banded — 

Through life's quarries they did roam, 

Faithful-hearted, skillful-handed, 

Bearing many a true block home. 

Noticing — measuring — 

Fashioning — polishing — 

For their glorious Temple-home. 



%ht €fimx &m. 



In the lawn that graces an aged Mason's residence, stands a Cedar 
Tree, planted in 1836, "for masonic purposes." Still the withered 
hand that placed it there to furnish sprigs of evergreen for burial use is 
strong enough to do the Master's Work at each Lodge meeting, and 
still at an age passing the Psalmist's utmost computation, he who 
planted it waits patiently for the day when its limbs shall be bared of 
their foliage to bestrew his coffin. 



Droops thy bough, oh Cedar Tree, 

Like yon dear, yon aged form — 
Droops thy bough in sympathy, 

For the wreck of life's sad storm ! 
Sad, indeed, his weary age — 

Lonely, now, his princely home — 
And the thoughts his soul engage, 

Axe of winter and the tomb I 



'Twas for this, oh Cedar Tree, 

Verdant midst the wintry strife, — 
'Twas for this he planted thee 

Type of an immortal life — 
That when round his grave in tears, 

Brothers in their Art combine, 
From the store thy foliage bears, 

Each may cast a portion in ! 



82 A LODGE VALEDICTORY. 

Lo ! lie comes, oh Cedar Tree, 

Slowly o'er the frosted plain ; 
Pauses here the signs to see, 

Graven with a mystic pen ! 
How does each some hope express ! 

Lighter gleams the wintry sky, 
Lighter on his furrowed face 

Smiling at the mystery ! 

Soon to rest, oh Cedar Tree, 

Soon the veteran shall be borne, 
There to sleep and patiently 

Wait the resurrection-morn ; 
Thou shalt perish from the earth ; 

He in sacred youth revive, 
Glorious in a better birth — 

Truths like these the emblems give. 



% IW&0* Ualcbktonr. 

Good-night ! the spirits of the blest and good, 
From these dear walls go with you and abide ; 

In hours of sorrow, hours of solitude, 

Or when the hosts of melancholy brood, 

And cloud your mind, may angel-spirits glide 

Prom the White Throne and give you great delight : 
Dear friends, good-night ! 



HARD SERVICE, GOOD WAGES. 

Good-night ! good-niglit ! and joy be with you all ; 

May sickness never blight, nor poverty ; 
May slanderous breath your spirits ne'er appall ; 
May no untoward accident befall, 

But all things prosperous and happy be ; 
May morning suns rise on you fresh and bright : 
Dear friends, good-night ! 

Good-night ! and when the shadows of the grave 
Close in around you, — when the laboring breath 

Draws heavily, and unto Him who gave, 

Tou yield the spirit, be He strong to save, 
Who is our Guide and Saviour unto death ! 

Then may dear friends and heavenly hopes unite 
To say, good-night ! 



Partr Sorbite, 6000 ^Magts. 

Bow the back, ye Brothers, dear ! — 

Pinch the flesh, the work's severe ! 

Come, while every workman sleeps, 

View the City ! heaps on heaps ! 

See the Temple desolate ! 

Lo ! the burnt and shattered Gate ! 

To repair it is your wish ? — 

Bow the Back ! and Pinch the Flesh 1 



84 HARD SERVICE, GOOD ffAGES, 

Bow the Back ! — 'tis hopeful toil ; 
Yours the Corn and Wine and Oil, 
Emblems of reward, shall be, 
Plenty, Peace, and Unity ! 
Pinch the Flesh ! — not long you wait !— 
Standing in the Golden Gate, 
Lo ! your Lord ! and in his hand 
"Wages rich at your command ! 

Cheer to those who, long and late, 
Meet and toil at Sion's Gate ! 
Cheer and Courage ! — See ! on high 
Beams the bright All-seeing Eye ! 
See ! the work goes bravely on ; — 
Wall and Gate and Tower are won ! 
Grasp the Trowel ! — Wield the Sword !- 
Cheer ! — And trust in Sion's Lord ! 

By the Hieroglyphics ten — 

Wisdom, Strength, and Beauty's plan ;- 

By the mystic Features seven — 

Surely by the Master given : 

By the Covenant-woven faith, 

Strong in life, and strong in death ; — 

Every hope of foeman crush ! 

Bow the Back ! and Pinch the Flesh ! 



Jfaiilj 0f % #Ifrm Citra. 

Give me tlie Faith my fathers had, 
When home-worn ties they cast, 

In stern contempt forever back, 
Like chaff upon the blast. 

These prayers, lip-measured, leave me chill, 

As icy foimt sends icy rill ; 

No passion bidding nature start, 

No fire struck out to warm the heart ; 

There's nothing here to make me glad — 

Give me the Faith my fathers had. 

A patriot now is bought and sold, 

For price — but render me 
The hopes that braced the hearts of old, 

My fathers' Libekty. 
What's fine-drawn speech and wordy war 
A candle-ray to freedom's star ! 
The hand to hilt, the sword abroad, 
The flag to heaven, the heart to God, 
These are the tokens I would see — 
Give me my fathers' Libekty. 

Give me my fathers' walk below : 

No artful mind was theirs, 
To compass kindred hearts about, 

With treachery and snares ; 



86 FAITH OF THE OLDEN TIM 

No nets of artifice they spread 
To lure the innocent to tread ; 
Life's blessings how they freely shared ! 
Life's fear they boldly met and dared ; 
A blameless life, a death sublime, 
These were the things of Olden Time. 

Give me the friendships that entwined, 

The upright trimks of yore ; 
The tendrils that so sweetly vined 

A beauty and a power. 
My heart is sad to think this earth, 
With all its joy, with all its mirth, 
Has lost the chain our fathers wove, 
The chain of holy, holy love, — 
Has lost the path our fathers trod, 
The path that led them up to God. 

Oh then bring back the palmy days y 

Of innocence and truth, 
When honesty was in its prime, 

And selfishness in youth. 
When man allowed to man his place, 
When probity unbared its face, 
When justice poised an equal scale, 
And faith sang through the dying wail ; 
Away an age of care and crime, 
Give me the days of Olden Time L 



&Ij£ lUsitradkm:. 



The Craft in days gone by, 

Drew from their Mystery, 
The mightiest truths God ever gave to men : 

They whispered in the ear, 

Bowed down with solemn fear, 
" The dead, the buried dead shall live again !" 

Oh wondrous, wondrous word ! 

No other Rites afford 
This precious heritage, this matchless truth ! 

" Though gone from weeping eyes, 

Though in the dust he lies, 
Our Friend, our Brother, shall renew his youth !" 

And we, who yet remain, 

Shall meet our dead again ; 
Shall give the hand that thrilled within our grasp 

The token of our faith, 

Unchanged by time and death ; — 
And breast to breast his faithful form shall clasp ! 

But who, oh Gracious God ! 

The power shall afford ? 
Who with Omnipotence shall break the tomb ? 

What morning Star shall rise 

To chase from sealed eyes 
The long-oppressing darkness and the gloom ? 



CONSECRATION OF A CEMETERY. 

Lo, at the Mystic shrine 

The answer all Divine ! 
Lo where the Tracing-Board doth plainly tell : 

" Over the horrid tomb, 

The bondage and the gloom, 
The Lion of the Tribe of Judah shall prevail!' 1 

Then hopefully we bend 

Above our sleeping friend, 
And hopeful cast the green sprigs o'er his head ; 

'Tis but a fleeting hour — 

The Omnipotent hath Power, 
And he will raise our Brother from the dead ! 



In each cold bed a mortal sleejjs — 

The Silent Lodge is here ! 
Pale death an awful vigil keeps, 

Through all the changing year. 

What tears have wet these grassy mounds ! 

What sighs these winds have heard ! 
Oh God, have not the piteous sounds 

Thy pitying bosom stirred ! 



CONSECRATION OF A CEMETERY. 89 

Shall man thus die and waste away 

And no fond hope be left ! 
Is there no sweet confiding ray 

For bosoms all bereft ! 



From each cold bed a form shall rise 
When the great hour shall come ; 

The trump shall shake the upper skies, 
And wake the lower tomb. 

No weeping then, no tear nor groan, 
For these around us spread ; 

A shout shall reach the yery Throne 
From the long-silent dead. 

Then hush our hearts, be dry each tear, 
"Wake, oh desponding faith ! 

And when our Saviour shall appear, 
"We too shall conquer death ! 



On these llest Graves let sunbeams pour 

Their balmiest influence ; 
On them, let each reviving shower, 

Its gracious pearls dispense. 

O'er these llest Graves each gentle breeze 
Its heavenly whispers breathe ; 

O'er them, the foliage of the trees 
A crown of verdure wreathe. 



90 SOMOTEITBE. 

Bound these blest Graves at dead of night, 

May angel-bands combine, 
And from their Mansions ever bright, 

Bring something all Divine. 



From these blest Graves may hope revive ; 

May Jtjdah's Lion tell 
That we shall meet these dead alive, 

For oh, we loved them well. 

Then come sad hour, we lay us down 

And calmly wait his word : 
Blest are the dead, our spirits own 

Who knew and served the Lord. 



Bo Boh it ge. 



So mote it be with us when life shall end, 

And from the East, the Lord op Light shall bend, 

And we, our six days' labor fully done, 

Shall claim our wages at the Master's throne. 

So mote it be with us : that when the Square, 
That perfect implement, with heavenly care, 
Shall be applied to every block we bring, 
No fault shall see our Master and our King. 



A HEBREW CHANT. 91 

So mote it be with us : that though our days 

Have yielded little to the Master's praise, 

The little we have builded may be proved 

To have the marks our first Grand Master loved ! 

So mote it be with tjs : we are but weak ; 
Our days are few ; our trials who cau speak ! 
But sweet is our communion while we live, 
And rich rewards the Master deigns to give. 

Let's toil then, cheerfully, let's die in hope ; 
The Wall in wondrous grandeur riseth up ; 
They who come after shall the work complete, 
And they and we receive the wages meet. 



Lonely is Sion, cheerless and still, 
Shekinah has left thee, thou desolate Hill : 
Winds sweep around thee, familiar their tone, 
But trumpet, timbrel, song are gone. 

Joyous was Sion on that glorious day, 
When Israel beheld all thy Temple's display ; 
Heaven sent a token approvingly down, 
But temple, altar, cloud are gone. 



92 GO ON THY BRIGHT CAREER. 

Foemen of Sion uplifted the spear, 
The brand to thy Temple, the chains to each frere : 
Pilgrims and strangers, thy children yet mourn, 
But foemen, fetter, brand are gone. 

Spirit of Sion, oh hasten the day, 
When Israel shall gather in matchless array ! 
Lord ! build thine altars, thy people return, 
For temple, altar, cloud are gone. 



60 0tt ibtr §ngbt Carter. 

Go on thy bright career, brave, faithful heart, 

Prayers of the faithful every step attending ; 

Go spread the triumphs of the Mystic Art, 

Wherever knee to Deity is bending ; 

Raise up the landmarks, long in rubbish hidden I 

Rear high the Altar on Moriah's brow ; 

Denounce all teachings by our rites forbidden, 

And Light, more Light, on yearning hearts bestow. 

Crush all things that obstruct the cause of truth ; 
How grand, how noble is the sacrifice ! 
How worthy of the brightest dreams of youth, 
To build a House like that within the skies ! 
Oh when we lay thee, mourned-for, 'neath the sod, 
And cast the green and fragrant bough of faith, 
How cheerful can we give thee to thy God 
Whose works defy the utmost power of death ! 



Wliere hearts are warm with kindred fire, 

And love beams free from answering eyes, 
Bright spirits hover always there, 

And that's the home the Masons prize. 

The Masons' Home ! the peaceful home t 
The home of love and light and joy ! 
How gladly does the Mason come 
To share his tender, sweet employ ! 

All round the world, by land, by sea, 

Where summers burn or winters chill, 
The exiled Mason turns to thee, 

And yearns to share the joys we feel. 

The Masons' Home ! the happy home ! 
The home of light and love and joy ! 
There's not an hour but I would come 
And share this tender, sweet employ ! 

A weary task, a dreary round, 

Is all benighted man may know, 
But here a brighter scene is found, 

The brightest scene that's found below. 
The Masons' Home ! the blissful home 

Glad center of unmingled joy ! 
Long as I live I'll gladly come 
And share this tender, sweet employ I 



94 THE DYING REQUEST. 

And when the hour of death shall come, 

And darkness seal my closing eye, 

May hands fraternal hear me home, 

The home where weary Masons lie ! 

The Masons' Home ! the heavenly home I 

To faithful hearts eternal joy ! 
How blest to find beyond the tomb 
The end of all our sweet employ ! 



}t *§vmg liquet 



The last request of General Morgan Lewis, Grand Master of 
Masons in New York, is embodied in these lines : 



The veteran sinks to rest ; — 

" Lay it upon my breast, 
And let it crumble with my heart to dust — 

Its leaves a lesson tell ; — 

Their verdure teacheth well 
The everlasting greenness of my trust. 

" Through three score years and ten, 

With failing, dying men, 
I've wept the uncertainties of life and time 1 

The symbols, loved of yore, 

Have changed, have lost their power, 
All save this emblem of a faith sublime. 



THE DYING REQUEST. 95 

" Things are not as they were ; — 

The Level and the Square, 
Those time-worn implements of love in truth, — 

The incense flowing o'er — 

The Lamb-skin chastely pure, 
Bear not the inteqjretation as in youth. 

" Their moral lore they lose ; 

They mind me but of those 
Now in death's chambers who their teachings knew ; 

I see them — they but breathe 

The charnel airs of death — 
I cannot bear then* saddening forms to view. 

" But this, O symbol bright ! 

Surviving age's blight, 
This speaks in honey-tones, unchanged, unchanged ! 

In it I read my youth, 

In it my manhood's truth, 
In it bright forms of glory long estranged. 

" Green leaves of summer skies, 

Blest type of Paradise ! 
Tokens that there's a world I soon shall see, 

Of these take good supply ; 

And, Brothers, when I die, 
Lay them upon my breast to die with me I" 



96 THE ALL-SEEING EYE. 

'Twas done. They're crumbled now — 

He lies in ashes too ; 
Yet was that confidence inspired in vain ? 

Ah no, his noble heart, 

When death's dark shades depart 
With them in glory shall spring forth again. 



re gil-Smng %*♦ 



There is an eye through blackest night 

A vigil ever keeps ; 
A vision of unerring light, 
O'er lowly vale, o'er giddy height, 

The Eye that never sleeps. 

Midst poverty and sickness lain, 

The outcast lowly weeps ; 
What marks the face convulsed with pain ? 
What marks the softened look again ? 

The Eye that never sleeps. 

Above the far meridian sun — 

Below profoundest deeps, 
Where dewy day his course begun, 
Where scarlet marks his labor done— 

The Eye that never sleeps. 



APPRECIATION. 97 

No limit bounds th' Eternal Sight ; 

No misty cloud o'ersweeps ; 
The depths of hell give up their light — 
Eternity itself is bright — 

The Eye that never sleeps. 

Then rest we calm, though round our head 

The life-stomi fiercely sweeps ; 
What fear is in the blast ! what dread 
In mightier Death ! An Eye's o'erhead, 

The Eye that never sleeps. 



Jlprmatiott. 



'Tis good to feel ourselves beloved of men ; 
To know that all our anxious cares and sighs 
For others' weal is given not in vain, 
But treasured up in grateful memories ; 
How light the toil for those we fondly love ! 
How rich the wages grateful spirits prove ! 

But when those men are Brothers, strongly bound 
By bonds indissoluble, sweet and true ; — 
When gratitude springs out of sacred ground 
And prayers are mingled with the praises due ; 
Ah then, toil is no burden, gifts no load ! 
We have full recompense for what's bestowed. 



98 LEANING TOWARDS EACH OTHER. 

'Tis thus with you, my Friend ! the voice of all 
Yields willing tribute to your high deserts ; 
But from the Craft there comes a stronger call — 
From that Great Brotherhood whose chain begirts 
The broad world round, the grateful wages come 
Whose price is Honor and whose favor Bloom. 

Long may you live in Bloom and Honor, long 
To show the Christian in the Mason's guise ! 
In Strength Omnipotent may you be strong ! 
In "Wisdom Heavenly may you be wise ! 
And when to Death's dark portals you shall come 
May Jesus banish all the fear and gloom ! 



The jolts of life are many, 

As we dash along the track ; 
The ways are rough and rugged, 
And our bones they sorely rack. 
We're tossed about, 
We're in and out, 

We make a mighty pother — 
Far less would be 
Our pains, if we 

Would lean towards each other ! 



LEANING TOWARDS EACH OTHER. 99 

Behold that loving couple, 

Just mated for their life — 
What care they for. the joltings, 
That happy man and wife ! 
The cars may jump, 
Their heads may bump, 

And jostle one another, 
They only smile, 
And try the while 

To lean towards each other ! 

"Woe to the luckless pilgrim, 

"Who journeys all alone ! 
"Well said the wise King Solomon — 
" Two better is than one !" 
For when the ground's 
Most rugged found, 

And great's the pain and pother, 
He cannot break 
The sorest shake 
By leaning towards another ! 

There's not one in ten thousand, 

Of all the cares we mourn, 
But what, if 'twas divided, 
Might easily be borne ! 
If we'd but learn, 
"When fortunes turn, 



LofC. 



100 THE HOUR OF ELEVEN. 

To share them with a Brother, 
We'd prove how good's 
Our Brotherhood, 

By leaning towards each other ! 

Then, Masons, take my counsel — 
The Landmarks teach you so — 
Share all the joltings fairly, 
As down the track you go ! 
Yes, give and take, 
Of every shake, 

With all the pain and pother, 
And thus you'll prove 
Your Mason's love, 

By leaning towards each other ! 



The expiring words of a zealous Mason were " High Eleven \" 

'Twas at the hour, when laborers cast 

A wistful eye to heaven, 
And near the South the fervid sun 

In glory shines — eleven. 

A skillful man with cheerful toil 

His morning tasks had driven ; 
He smiled to see the glowing sun 

Proclaim the hour — eleven. 



THE HOUR OF ELEVEN. 101 

A faithful frere, of all the band 

To him the meed was given ; 
'Twas not in indolence he gazed, 

Or smiled to see — eleven. 

His Master's work had lost no charm 

That youth and zeal had given ; 
Unswerving faith had buoyed him up 

From six to high eleven. 

But worn and spent, he needed rest, 

Nor could delay till even ; 
He felt his task was nearly done, 

And smiled to see — eleven. 

And soon the stroke high noon announced 

His entrance into heaven ; 
Prophetic proved that upward gaze, 

That smile, that word— eleven. 



Com. mmt. mi 

It is the Master's province to communicate light to the brethren. 

They come from many a pleasant home — 
To clo the Ancient Work they come, 

With cheerful hearts and light ; 
They leave the world without, a space, 
And gathering here in secret place, 

They spend the social night ; 
They earn the meed of honest toil, 
Wages of Corn, and Wine, and Oil. 

Upon the sacred Altar lies, 
Ah many a precious sacrifice 

Made by these working men ! 
The passions curbed, the lusts restrained, 
And hands with human gore unstained, 

And hearts from envy clean ; 
They earn the meed of honest toil, 
Wages of Corn, and Wine, and Oil. 

They do the deeds their Master did ;, 
The naked clothe, the hungry feed — 

They warm the shivering poor ; 
They wipe from fevered eyes, the tear ; 
A Brother's joys and griefs they share, 

As One had done before : 
They earn the meed of honest toil, 
Wages of Corn, and Wine, and Oil. 



103 



Show them how Masons Masons know, 
The land of strangers journeying through, 

Show them how Masons love ; 
And let admiring spirits see 
How reaches Masons' charity 

From earth to heaven above ; 
Give them the meed of honest toil, 
Wages of Corn, and "Wixe, and Oil. 

Then will each Brother's tongue declare 
How bounteous his wages are, 

And Peace will reign within ; 
Your walls with skillful hands will grow, 
And coming generations know 

Your Temple is Divine ; 
Then give the meed of honest toil, 
Wages of Corn, and Wine, and Oil. 

Yes, pay these men their just desert ! 
Let none dissatisfied depart, 

But give them full reward ; 
Give Light that longing eyes may see ; 
Give Truth that doth from error free ; 

Give them to know the Lord ! 
Give them the meed of honest toil, 
Wages of Corn, and Wine, and Oil. 



Crtlmtc to gobcrt gums. 

The sun is uprising on Scotia's far hills, 

Day's labor is opening, the Grand Master wills, 

But Lodge-lights are gleaming in cheerfulness yet, 

Afar in the west, where we Masons are met. 

There's song for the tuneful, kind words for the kind, 

There's cheer for the social, and light for the blind, 

But when we, uprising, prepare us to go, 

With one thought and feeling we'll sing thy Adieu. 

A melting farewell to the favored and bright, — 
A sorrowful thought for the sun set in night,— 
A round to the Bard whom misfortunes befell, — 
A prayer that his spirit with Masons may dwell. 
When freedom and harmony bless our design, 
We'll think of thee, Brother, who loved every line ; 
And when gloomy clouds shall our Temple enshroud, 
The voice of thy music shall come from the cloud. 

Across the broad ocean two hands shall unite, 
Columbia, — Scotia, — the symbol is bright ! 
The world one Grand Lodge, and the heaven above, 
Shall witness the triumph of Faith, Hope, and Love ; 
And thou, sweetest Bard, when our gems we enshrine, 
Thy jewel, the brightest, most precious, shall shine, 
Shall gleam from the East, to the far distant West, 
While morning shall call us, or evening shall rest. 

104 



&jj£ Jomtiratum Btam> 

When the Spirit came to Jephthah, 

Animating his great heart, 
He arose, put on his armor, 

Girt his loins about to part, 
Bowed the knee, implored a blessing, 

Gave an earnest of his faith, 
Then, divinely-strung, departed, 

Set for victory or death. 

If a rude, uncultured soldier 

Thus drew Wisdom from above, 
How should we, enlightened Laborers, 

Children of the She of Love, — 
How should we, who know " the Wisdom 

Gentle, pure and peaceable," 
Make a prayerful preparation 

That our work be square and full ! 

Lo the future ! One can read it — 

He its darkest chance can bend : 
Lo our wants, how great, how many ! 

He abundant means can lend : 
Eaise your hearts then, Pilgrims, boldly 

Build and journey in his trust : 
Square your deeds by precepts holy, 

And the end is surely blest. 



106 THE INHERITANCE OF FRIENDSHIP. 

Vainly will the builders labor 

If the Overseer is gone ; 
Vainly gate and wall are guarded 

If the All-Seeing is withdrawn ; 
Only is successful ending 

When the work's begun with care ; 
Lay your blocks, then, Laborers, strongly, 

On the Eternal Rock of Prayer. 



Cjje Jnjrmtance of Jrimbsjjip. 

When twenty years have circled round, 

The lads now standing at my knee 
Will cherish one poor spot of ground 
Sacred to memory and me. 
Gazing upon the humble sod, 
Recalling each fond, loving word, 
They'll keep one link in memory's chain 
Bright, till the hour we meet again. 

Such is the lesson I impart 

At evening's set when prayers are said : 
The last sweet sentiment at heart 
Ere little eyes are closed in bed. 

That when upon life's billows tossed, 
In worldly selfishness engrossed, 
A Cable-tow the thought shall prove 
To draw them by a Father's love. 



THE INHERITANCE OF FRIENDSHIP. 101 

When twenty years have come and gone 

They who shall fondly look for you 
Must leave the scenes you now adorn 
And seek the sodded hillock too : 
Tears will bedew the grass beneath, 
Sighs will unite with nature's breath, 
To embalm within that hallowed bed, 
A father loved, a father dead. 



There's Brotherhood in honest sighs, 

There's Brotherhood in earnest tears : 
Our sons, made kindred by such ties, 
Shall interchange their hopes and fears : 
Tours to the West their steps will bend 
To honor their dear Father's friend : 
Mine to the East will make their way 
A pious pilgrimage to pay. 

Such was the dream that fired my brain 

Last night as mid my loved ones lying, 
It came again, again, again, 

And traced itself in lines undying. 
I dreamed we twain had joined the bands 
Who live and love in other lands, 
And from high seats beheld with joy 
The step of each dear pilgrim-boy. 



108 TO MASONS EVERYWHERE. 

I dreamed that on some sunny plain 

They, o'er whose couch we've bent at night, 
Met, twined with eager hands the chain, 
The Chain of Love, the Chain of Light ; 
With glowing lips exchanged the Word — 
No fonder does our tongue afford, — 
And Covenanted by that faith 
Their fathers pledged and kept till death. 

Then be it so, dear Friend, and while 

For earthly labors we are spared, 
Let's teach our sons to cherish well 
The friendship we've so freely shared. 
Then at life's sunset we may die 
And yet the power of Death defy : 
Then by the Monster-victor slain 
In our dear Children live again ! 



Co litems dEbergfofrer*. 

In gladsome mood again we're met — 

How swiftly passed the year ! 
Begin the feast, and, Brothers, drink 
To Masons everywhere ! 

A Mason's love is unrestrained ; 
Each other's woes we share ; 
Then lift the cup, and, Brothers, drink 
To Masons everywhere ! 



TO MASONS EVERYWHERE. 

What would our Mystic Tie be worth. — 

How little should we care 
For Masonry, did not its links 
Encircle everywhere ! 

With Masons' love so unrestrained, 

Each other's woes to share, 
Well may we fill the cup and drink 
To Masons everywhere ! 

Though some we loved have fallen on 

The weary path of care, 
What then ! in heaven they're yet our own ! 
To Masons everywhere ! 

For Masons' love, so unrestrained, 

Eternity may dare ! 
Then, Brothers, fill, and fondly drink 
To Masons everywhere ! 

And so, when death shall claim us, too, 

And other forms be here, 
May we in memory's heart be held 
By Masons everywhere ! 

For Masons' love is unrestrained, 
Nor death the chain may tear ; 
O'erflow the cup, and, Brothers, drink 
To Masons everywhere ! 



109 



% Utasonit (feeing. 

Lo, from the distant West, 

Lo, from your honored guest 
The voice of greeting and a word of prayer ; 

Ye Sons of Cheer, all hail ! 

This grateful tongue shall tell 
The tie that binds you and the joys you share ! 

There is a Cord of length, 

There is a Chain of strength, 
Around you each I see the sacred coil ; 

How long, ah, well I know ! 

How strong, your deeds do show, 
The while you labor in the sacred toil. 

In amplest share bestowed, 

By Him you worship — God, 
The joy of Friendship well you feel and prize, 

'Tis His own best design, 

'Tis perfect, 'tis divine, 
It is the bliss diffused through upper skies. 

Peace be within your halls ! 

The Cement of your walls 
Be Holt Love — pure, indestructible ! 

From the o'erarching Heaven 

A gracious smile be given, 
The favor of a Deity to tell ! 
no 



THE HAPPY HOUR. Ill 

When each shall bow in death, 

Joy to the parting breath ! 
Rich fragrance from a thousand generous deeds ! 

And where your ashes be, 

Sacred to memory 
The spot while man pure truth and honor heeds ! 

And me, oh loving Friends, 

When life's poor story ends, 
Me in your inner heart of hearts enshrine ! 

Humble, but oh sincere, — 

Erring and sorrowing here, 
Write me as one who loved each Mystic line ! 

Builders of light, your hands ! 

Distant our several lands ? 
No ; for I see, I hear, I feel you now ! 

Bind once again the chain ; 

Again, dear Friends, again ; 
Hear, Gracious Lord, hear and confirm the Vow ! 



Oh happy hour when Masons meet ! 
Oh rarest joys that Masons greet ! 
Each interwoven with the other, 
And Brother truly joined with Brother, 
In intercourse that none can daunt, 
Linked by the ties of Covenant. 



112 THE WORLD-WIDE RECOGNITION, 

See, ranged about the Holy Word, 

The Craftsmen praise their common Lord ! 

See in each eye a love well proven ! 

Around each heart a faith well woven ! 

Feel, in each hand-grip, what a tie 

Is this whose scope is Masonry. 

Blest bond ! when broken, we would fain 
Unite the severed links again ; 
Would urge the tardy hours along, 
To spend the wealth of light and song, 
That makes the Lodge a sacred spot ; 
Oh, be the season ne'er forgot, 
That takes us from a world of care 
To happy scenes where Masons are ! 



Wherever man is tracing 

The weary ways of care, 
'Midst wild and desert pacing, 

Or lands of softer air, 
We surely know each other, 

And with true words of cheer, 
Each Brother hails his Brother, 

And hope wings lightly there. 



THE WIDOW AND THE FATHERLESS. 113 

Wherever tears are falling — 

The soul's dark wintry rain — 
And human sighs are calling 

To human hearts in vain, 
We surely know each other, etc. 

Wherever prayer is spoken, 

In earnestness of Faith, 
We're minded of the token 

That tells our Master's death. 
We pray, then, for each other, etc. 

Wherever man is lying 

Unknowing and unknown, 
There's one yet by the dying — 

He shall not die alone. 
For then we know each other, etc. 



Cfye Wixboti antr % Jfa%rta. 

As on my road delaying, 

The stream's cool waters by, 
My thoughts in fancy straying, 

I heard a plaintive cry : 
" There may be hope in heaven — ■ 

For us no hope is here ; 
Oh, why was joy thus given, 

So soon to disappear ! " 



114 THE WIDOW AND THE FATHERLE 

Around the grave was weeping 

A widowed, orphaned band ; 
Beneath their feet was sleeping 

The husband, father, Mend ; 
And as their sorrows, swelling, 

Broke forth midst sigh and tear, 
Again these words were telling — 

" Alas, no hope is here !" 

The stream's cool waters flowing, 

No longer sung to me — 
The soft spring sunbeams glowing, 

"Were cheerless all to see ; 
For still that widowed mother, 

And still those orphans dear, 
Bewailed my buried Brother — 

" Alas, no hope is here ! " 

My Brother ? yes, forsaken, 

These lov'd ones round thee mourn : 
Too soon from friendship taken, 

Dear Brother, thou art gone ! 
Gone from a cold world's sighing, 

From sorrow and from fear, 
But left these mourners crying — 

" Alas, no hope is here ! " 



THE DEATH OF THE GRAND MASTER. 115 

Those tears, my heart, are holy ! 

Those sighs by anguish driven, 
This mourning group so lowly, 

Are messengers of Heaven ; 
And so will I receive them, 

As God shall give me cheer, 
Protect them and relieve them, 

And teach them Hope is here ! 



%\t §mfy 0f % <grmtir Sfeftta 

Crawford, Grand Master of Maryland, died under the affecting 
circumstances here described : 

His voice was low, his utterance choked, 
He seemed bike one in sorrow bound, 

As from the Orient he invoked 

God's blessings on the Masons round. 

'Tis sad to see the strong man weep — 

Tears are for sorrows yet untried ; 
But who his sympathy can keep, 

When age unseals emotion's tide ? 

Eeverently stood the Brothers round, 

While their Grand Master breathed farewell, 

And strove to catch the faintest sound 
Of accents known and loved so well. 



116 THE DEATH OF THE GRAND MAST! 

He told them of the zealous care 
Of their forefathers of the Art ; 

How valley-gloom and niountain-air 
Bore witness of the faithful heart. 

He conned the precepts, line by line — 
Oh, that the Craft may ne'er despise 

Precepts so precious, so divine, 
That shape the Mason-mysteries. 

He warned them of a world unkind, 
Harsh to the good, to evil mild, 

Whose surest messengers are blind, 
Whose purest fountains are defiled. 

He told them of a world to come, 

To which this life a portal is, 
Where tired laborers go home, 

To scenes of never-ending bliss. 

Then of himself he humbly spoke — 

So modestly ! so tenderly ! 
While from the saddened group there broke 

An answering sigh of sympathy : 

" Now give me rest : my years demand 

A holiday, Companions dear ! 
My days are drawing to an end, 

And I would for my end prepare. 



THE VETERAN'S LAMENT. 117 

" Now give me rest ; but when you meet, 

Brothers, in this beloved spot, 
My name upon your lips repeat, 

And never let it be forgot ! 

" Now unto God, the Masons' Friend, 

The God out emblems brightly tell, 
Tour dearest interests I commend — 

Brothers, dear Brothers, oh, farewell ! " 

Down from the Orient, slowly down, 

"Weeping, through that sad group he passed, 

Turned once and gazed, and then was gone — 
That look — his tenderest and his last. 

Sis last — for, ere the week had sped, 

That group, with sorrow unrepressed, 
Gathered around their honored dead — 

Bore their Grand Master to his rest ! 



There's tenfold Lodges in the land 
Than when my days were few ; 

But none can number such a band, 
The wise, the bright, the true, 

As stood around me on the night, 

"When first I saw the Mystic Light, 
Full fifty years ago. 



118 THE VETERAN'S LAMENT. 

There's Brother love and Brother aid, 
Where'er the Craft is known ; 

But none like that whose twinings made 
The mighty chain that's gone — 

Ah, none like that which bound my soul 

When first my eyes beheld the goal 
Full fifty years ago. 

There's emblems green to deck the bed 

Of Masons where they rest, 
But none like those we used to spread 

Upon the Mason's breast, 
When, yielding up to death, they fell, 
Who'd battled with the monster well, 
Full fifty years ago. 

Oh, how my heart is kindled now, 

When round me meet again 
The shadows of the noble few, 

Who formed the mystic train 
In which my feet were proud to tread, 
When through admiring crowds we sped, 
Full fifty years ago. 

They're fled, that noble train, — they're gone,- 
Their last procession's o'er, — 

And I am left to brood alone. 
Ere I, too, leave the shore ; 



"WASHINGTON 119 

But while I have a grateful tear, 
I'll praise the bright ones that were here, 
Full fifty years ago. 



" Glory to God, in courts of glory high ! 

Earth, balmy peace ! good will, good will to men ! " 
O'er the still plain, beneath the Christmas sky 

Ring the glad tidings ; and again, again, 
" Glory to God, to God ! " the dewy plain 

Echoes the notes ; the midnight solitude, 
"Wood, mount, and waters, catch the glowing strain ! 

Ah, ne'er was heard such note since Satan stood, 

Sad hour, in Eden's groves, and worked to man no good ! 

Heaven's joy that night was perfect ! Christ was born ! 

Immanuel, Prince of Peace, and Son of God ! 
New grief to demons, wailing and forlorn, 

Pierced through their souls as an envenomed sword 
" To God, to God on high ! " — thus the accord — 

" On Earth good will and peace, good will and peace ! " 
Now far ascending, singing as they soared, 

The angelic sisters vanish ; echoes cease, 

And, from their mystic trance, the Shepherds' souls 
release. 



120 WASHINGTON. 

Spirits of peace, since that bright Christmas eve, 

Have oft descended from the ladder's top, 
And brought to those who suffer and believe 

The priceless blessings of the Christian's hope — 
That soon humanity will cease to grope 

In doubts and darkness, as in days gone by, 
And follow Him, the Peaceful, journeying up, 

From Bethlehem to gory Calvary, 

Who died that we might live, and lives eternally. 

Heaven sent a Washington ! there was much need — 

Ages had rolled along, and hearts had bled 
And liberty, down-trodden as a weed, 

No shelter found for her defenceless head : 
Peace lay, like Lazarus, in sepulchral bed : — 

God raised up Washington, and freedom smiled ! 
Once more to yearning hearts the angels said, 

" Good will to man, of grace the favored child ! 

" Good will to man ! " that voice shall never more be stilled. 

On Trestle-board Divine the plan was traced — 
The Master Architect his work surveyed ; 

Each virtue in its proper balance placed ; 
Each ornament of purest metal made ; 

Each block in symmetry exact was laid ; 
And there stood Washington, the Mason-man ! 

Wise unto warfare's sanguinary trade, 

Wiser to Peace — such was the Master's plan, 

And Wisdom, Beauty, Strength, through all the Temple ran 1 



WASHINGTON. 121 

Caution his chiefest care ; the outer gate 
Was strictly guarded ; through its portals came 

Nought that betrayed ; prudent, deliberate, 
Each messenger bore out undoubted claim 

To instant reverence and deathless fame. 
Thus, tyled with care, his sanctuary kept, 

Unstained its altar, unforgot its flame, 

While sentinels on other watch-towers slept, 

And Prudence o'er the ills of sad indifference wept. 

Sober in all things — Temperance, the spring 

Of human strength, was paramount in him ; 
There was no vile excess or lust to bring 

Untimely feebleness to manly limb, 
Or dull his ear, or make his eye grow dim. 

Like one of old, the Leader through the sea, 
Floated no changes on life's rapid stream ; 

Age brought him death, but not infirmity — 

Bore hence the vigorous frame, unshaken by decay. 

How great his Fortitude ! protracted war 

Caused patriot hearts to sink dispirited ; 
His bleeding army cast in flight before 

A taunting enemy ; his hopes betrayed — 
How great his Fortitude ! firm, undismayed, 

The pillar of his suffering country stood, 
By night a glow, by day refreshing shade, 

A column fixed, unshaken, unsubdued ! 

Plumbed by the Master's hand, by him pronounced Good ! 



122 WASHINGTON. 

Excellent he in Justice ; if to do, 

In all that life presents, from day to day, 
To others as you would they do to you, — 

If this be Masonry, a Mason he ! 
Unswerving to the right or left, his way 

"Was onward, upward ; in his hand the scale 
Of righteousness was equipoised, to pay 

Homage to God — hail, Great Creator, hail ! 

to man — for man was Brother cherished well. 



But not these sterner virtues only stand 

Around this good man's life ; true Brotherly Love, 

Such as the ancient brethren cherished, and 
Relief that does both pain and woe remove, 

And Truth, an attribute of God above, 

Clustered like dropping vines on Washington. 

What marvel that admiring Masons strove 
To catch the light from such a matchless sun, 
Or claim the mantle, ere the godlike chief was gone ! 

Henceforth the Christmas song need not be stilled ! 

The conqueror, ere the battle's turmoil cease, 
Turns from the glory of the encrimsoned field 

And bends in homage to the Prince op Peace. 
" Glory to God " — that anthem shall increase, 

" On Earth " such lives proclaim " Good will to man ! " 
Henceforth, when angels sing Immanuel's grace, 

We'll strike the harp, and recognize the plan ; 

Oh, that our earth might yield such Temple- work again / 



"WASHINGTON. 123 

Lo the sands swiftly run ! behold, our lives 

Dropping, like foliage, to a solemn close ! 
To-day the bud bright expectation gives, 

To-morrow blossoms to a transient rose ; 
Another morn, and its whole beauty goes ; 

Its leaves are scattered wastefully around, ■ 
No heart remembering ; another glows 

Upon the stem ; another hope is crowned ; 

And this is human life, the life the dead have found. 

Count well the moments then, fill up the day ! 

Brothers, let wisdom's hand your life-plans trace ! 
The Temple will be finished, though we may 

Not see the Stone exalted to its place : 
It is enough that God will see and bless : 

Labor while it is day ; there's work for all ; 
The Trestle-Board proclaims it, and alas ! 

Too soon will night spread round its hueless pall : 

Too soon the grave, the grave from which there's no recall. 

Clouds may obscure us ; slander may detract ; 

The foes of truth and rectitude unite ; 
But while within our mystic sphere we act, 

There lives no power can hinder or affright. 
The Master's eye still oversees the right ; 

Heaven's books record it with angelic pen ; 
And when death's summons calls us up the height, 

A full reward for labor shall we gain, 

In God's own Temple freed from sorrow, toil and pain. 



124 THE THREE SALUTES. 

Man of a thousand virtues, Washington ! 

Thy model, lent from heaven, we prefer ; 
Our deeds, upon that high design begun, 

Shall merit praise, tried by the Chief O'erseer : 
Master of men ! hear thou the Mason's prayer ! 

Breathe in our spirits a true love of peace ; 
Teach us a brother's bonds and woes to share ; 

Enlarge our charity, our faith increase, 
And save us all in Christ, the Mason's Righteousness ! 



I hail you, Brother, in the place 

Where none but those should meet 
Whose types are bended knee and brow, 

And the uncovered feet ; 
I take you by the grip, expressing 

All that heart can feel, 
And I pledge myself to be to you, 

A Brother true as steel ! 

I've watched with real joy your quest, 

So ardent and so rare — 
Your bold, unflinching gaze upon 

The things we most revere ; 
I've seen that nothing daunts you 

In the paths our Lights reveal ; 
And I pledge myself again to you, 

A Brother true as steel ! 



THE MASTER OF THE UPRIGHT HEART. 125 

I think there's that within you 

Only needs for time to show — 
Will kindle up a flame where 

Others only feel a glow ; 
I think the grave will claim you, 

As a Mason ripe and leal ; 
And so once more I pledge myself 

A Brother true as steel ! 



% Sasto uf % %n# part. 

German authors describe the affecting incident given in the follow- 
ing lines. The opening verses allude to a journey up the Mississippi 
river in 1853, swollen at that time out of its banks, during which the 
author related the incident to his children. 

We journeyed up the Western flood, 

My little boys and I, 
And watched the drifts of ice and wood 

That floated swiftly by ; 
While banks and trees and dwellings too 
Appeared like islands in the view. 

We marked with sympathy and grief 

The general distress, 
And fain the lads would give relief 

To every suffering case ; — 
But when a corpse came floating past 
They fled the spectacle aghast. 



126 THE MASTER OF THE UPRIGHT HEART. 

Then in our little room we met 

Each on a -willing knee 
And listened to the various fate 

Of men by land and sea ; 
Of shipwrecked sailors starved for food 
And lost ones wandering in the wood. 

I told them of such noble deeds 

Where rescue had been given, 
Such generous acts, that he who reads 

Is moved to worship heaven. 
But most I pleased them with the part 
Of Julian of "The Upright Heart." 

" 'Twas on a stormy April day, 
The floods were at their height, 

All Frankfort gather'd out, they say, 
To see a dismal sight. 

A broken bridge — a swollen sea — 

And oh, a drowning family ! 

" The Master of ' The Upright Heart ' 

"Was Frankfort's noblest son : 
On many a field of high desert 

His laurels had been won, 
Not laurels wet with human blood 
But those acceptable to God. 



THE MASTER OF THE UPRIGHT HEART. 127 

" Smiles from the face of cold despair, — 

The widow's grateful song — 
The orphan's praise — the stranger's prayer — 

These to his crown belong ; 
Ah ! many such, thank God, there be 
In our world-wide fraternity ! 



" Prince Julian galloped to the brink 
Of that tremendous flood ; 

The perishing about to sink 
Inspired his noble blood. 

He called aloud, he called the brave 

This wretched family to save ! 



" None answered him ; again he cried : 
' Oh ! have you hearts of stone, 

To see them perish by your side ? 
Look ! look ! they wave us on !' 

He offered gold as water free, 

To save the drowning family ! 

" But when the boldest shrunk — deterred 
From such a desperate deed — 

He uttered not another word ; 
He bowed his pious head, 

Looked upwards — gave his soul to Ood — 

And plunged into the raging flood ! 



128 MASONIC VALEDICTORY. 

" That day the gates of Heaven were thrown 

To admit a spirit freed ; 
That day earth lost its noblest son, 

And gave him to the dead ; 
That day enshrined the Royal Art, 
Her hero of ' The Upright Heart !' " 

The lads sat thoughtful on my knee, 

Reflecting on the tale ; 
They loved to talk of Masonry, 

And knew its precepts well ; 
" I know what made him take such-pains ; 
The signs they made were Mason's signs /" 



When auld acquaintance closing round, 

Their parting grips entwine ; 
What song awakes the tender sigh, 

Like auld lang syne ! 

'Tis auld lang syne, the voice 

Of other days divine ! 
Come, Brothers, now a parting word 

To auld lang syne. 



MASONIC VALEDICTORY. 129 

From many a pilgrim-pathway come, 

To work the grand design. 
"We've wrought, and praised the sacred bond 

Of auld lang syne. 

Of auld lang syne, the bond 

Of auld lang syne 
Our fathers marked the sacred way 

In auld lang syne. 

Though wintry blasts the flesh may chill, 

Though torrid suns may shine, 
Our hearts' response unchanged will beat 

To auld lang syne. 

To auld lang syne, they beat 

To auld lang syne ; 
Each pulse responsive, thrilling high, 

To auld lang syne. 

Adieu, adieu ! the falling tear 

To friendship we assign ; 
Tour hand, your hand, my brother dear, 

For auld lang syne ! 

For auld lang syne, adieu 

For auld lang syne. 
Ah ! rent forever is the bond 

Of auld lang syne. 



At a New Year's Eve Festival at Chicago, Illinois, 1862-3, twenty, 
eight Masons sat the Old Year out and the New Year in. To commem- 
orate the pleasant event, a "Memorial" of songs was published, of 
which the following was the Exordium. 



(The Craft Assemble in Merry Mood.) 

High carnival to-night : a year of gloom, 

A twelvemonth, murky with the fogs of war, 
Has ended ; all its wrecks and ruin done ; 

Its severed bonds ; its Lodges, closed and still : 
Its altars overthrown ; its jewels soiled ; 

Its lambskins spotted with the hue of blood ; — 
The tale of horror, to its latest page, 

Is done, and Finis written at the close. 

High carnival to-night : a genial band, 
About refreshments' Altar circled close, 

Brings each his sacrifice and lays thereon : 

Each brings his jest, and each a merry thought, 
And his kind eyes that speak unuttered love. 

High carnival to-night ; pass round the quip — 
Let not the fire of wit go down, nor give 
One moment to the saddening reign of care. 
No Gavel here ; no frowning face ; no voice 
Of Master to subdue the craftsmen's joys. 
'Tis the last night, last hour of '62, 
And we will drown it in a flood of mirth. 

130 



A MASONIC SYMPOSIUM. 131 

{The Signal of Low XII. is heard.) 

But lo, the clock, 'tis midnight ! stealthy feet 
Of murderers creeping by, fall on the ear, 
And smothered voices whisper wonted words. 
'Tis midnight ! quick, ye mystic crew, come round- 
Close in, strong men, impenetrable lines, 
And weave the Indissoluble Chain of Love. 



{The Midnight Song of Masons.) 

Sing now departed joys ; sing high, ye Craft, 
Whose solemn march is ever timed to song ; 
Sing ye of days, ah never to return ! 
Of friends forever parted : sing, with tears, 
Of those, beneath th' Acacia sprigs that sleep, 
And let the last stroke of the parted year 
Be holy with remembrance of their love. 



{Bail to the New Year.) 

Huzza, sing louder now ! strain every voice 

In honor of the Tear, the new-born Tear, 

The blessed, hopeful, happy '63 ! 

Of all its health, and wealth, and bliss, sing high 1 

Of wives' love and of children's, blessed love, 

Of friends and friendship, everything that God 

Can yield on earth to His most favored ones. 



132 THE NARROW BOUNDARY. 

(The Prospective View.) 

Twelve teeming months lie spread before our eyes; 

Cease now to sing, and contemplate their train : 

Each Month a treasure from the Gracious Hand, 

Of means and rich occasions to do good. 

Join silently in Resolution now, 

And, Brothers, say, shall we not, through this year, 

Live nearer to our duty ? walk more true 

To Plumb-line and to Square than in the past ? 

Shall not our Covenants join, in closer bond, 

Us to each other and the whole to God ? 



So each one stands — a narrow line 
Divides the future from the past — 

A little space to labor in, 

Too brief for purposes so vast. 

Those grand designs, whose tracing proves 

Our inspiration is from heaven — 
Those boundless hopes — those deathless loves — 

'Tis but a day to these is given ! 

Then let us labor while we can — 
Throw off the burdens that oppress — 

Redeem this poor and fleeting span 
And look to God to help and bless ! 



new year's reflections. 133 

And should we seek, to give us cheer, 

Examples of the bold and true, 
A cloud of witnesses is here 

To prove what laboring men can do. 



lite fear's Jlefottas. 



Shall we see it, loving Brothers, 
Ere another New Year's day ? 
Shall we join those loving others 
Whom the past year tore away ? 
Shall we change this toil and drudge, 
For the bright Celestial Lodge, 
T. C. L. A. W. 
T. S. A. O. T. U. P. ? 



Shall we tread that one more station, 

Take that last and best degree 
"Whose consummate " Preparation " 
Is to set the spirit free ? 

Lay our bodies off that then 

Souls unburdened may go in, 

T. C. L. A. W. 

T. S. A. O. T. U. P. ? 



134 new year's reflections. 

Shall we find beyond the river — 
Shall we find beyond the tomb, 
Those who left us, not forever, 
Left its till we too should come ? 
Shall we learn the long-lost "Word. 
That admits a man to God — 
T. C. L. A. W. 
T. S. A. O. T. U. P. ? 

Then, be zealous, loving Brothers, 

While your lives so swiftly tend ; 
Emulate those faithful others 
In the prizes they have gained ; 
O'er the river, on the shore, 
They are happy evermore, 
T. C. L. A. W. 
T. S. A. O. T. U. P. 

Toil, — your wages rich are ready ; 

Bear, — your burdens all shall cease ; 
Give, — however poor and needy ; 
Pray, — and God will give release 
From this bitter toil and drudge 
To the bright Celestial Lodge, 
T. C. L. A. W. 
T. S. A. O. T. U. P. I 



Sxmdg &&antht0. 



We whisper good counsel in the ear of a Brother, and, in the most 
tender manner, remind him of his faults and endeavor to aid his refor- 
mation. 

Where is thy Brother, Craftsman, say, 
Where is the erring one to-day ? 
We look around the festive band, — 
What cheerful smiles on every hand ! 
The voice of laughter swells amain — 
Where is the brightest of the train ? 
The ready wit, the generous word, 
The glee in music's best accord, 
The bounteous gifts — oh where is he, 
The prince of Mason's revelry ? 
Not left unwarned in death to fall ? 
To lapse without one friendly call ? 

Alas, the grave has closed above 
So many objects of our love ! 
There is so many a vacant chair 
In every group where Masons are ! 
Of some the drunkard's cup doth tell : 
Tempted, yet sorrowing they fell ; 
Day after day they saw the light 
Recede, till day was turned to night ; 
Yet yearned and strove to pause, and staj 
Their feet upon the slippery way ; 
They fell, and none so bright are left 
As those of whom we are bereft. 

135 



136 A WELCOME INTO MASONRY. 

A voice from out the grave demands — 
" Where is thy Brother ? are thy hands, 
Quite guiltless of his priceless blood ? 
How often have ye kindly stood, 
And whispered loving word and prayer, 
Within the erring Brother's ear j 
How often counseled, plead, and warned, 
And from approaching danger turned ? " 
The thoughtful tear, the heavy sigh, 
Must speak for conscience a reply : 
Quick then, oh Craftsman, up and save 
The living from untimely grave ! 



5- (Wlclcomc into Hhsontg. 



Directed to one who subsequently acquired a distinguished name 
aa a Masonic writer. 



There were many with me were glad, Brother, 

When we read your later thought, 
And to one another we said, Brother, 

Tis an omen of good import ! 
For the battle of law has begun, Brother, 

The strife for " the good old way," 
And we need just such an one, Brother, 

As we knew you of old to be ! 



A W E L C ME IN T (1 M A S X K Y . ] 37 

Yes, one of the daring type, Brother — 

Such men as they had of yore, 
"With a head that in age is ripe, Brother, 

And a heart that is brimming o'er ; 
To know what a Landmark is, Brother — 

In love to be warm and true — 
Oh, how have we longed for these, Brother, 

And 'tis these we shall find in you ! 

In the day when your sands are spent, Brother, 

And the Craft shall your history tell, 
They'll say, as their grief has vent, Brother, 

" He has done his labor well !" 
For you know we have archives, Brother, 

And a column rent in twain. 
And a name that still greenly lives, Brother, 

Though the dust hath its dust again ! 

And these they'll give to you, Brother, 

As the guerdon of your meed ; 
For the love that is warm and true. Brother, 

For the heart and for the head ; 
For the battle of law has begun, Brother, 

The strife for " the good old way," 
And we need just such an one as you, Brother, 

As we know you of old to be ! 



gibibing % GD&asera, 



The ancient practice of sealing a devoted friendship between park 
ing friends, by separating some metallic substance, as a ring, a coin and 
the like, and dividing the fragments between the parties, is not alto- 
gether disused. In the rural districts of England and Scotland it is 
a custom of lovers, and many a poor laborer whose body lies buried in 
the soil of the Western Continent, bore upon his person at his dying 
hour this token of betrothal with one who shall never again meet him on 
earth. 

As a Masonic practice, we could wish it were more common. It is 
ancient, more ancient than any other manner of expressing friendship 
at parting. It is suitable to the symbolical character of our lessons. 
To rescue it from its present position as a mere amatory token, were 
worthy of our most accomplished writers. 

The following verses relate to an incident in the history of two 
orphan youth, adopted and educated by a benevolent widow in New 
Jersey. They became Masons at the same communication, were deeply 
indoctrinated in the symbolic beauties of the Royal Art, and, when 
they parted to pursue different fortunes — one to fill an honorable post 
in the army in Mexico, the other an officer on board an India Mer- 
chantman — they divided a golden ring between them, as a Tessera, 
and each suspended a portion nearest his heart. They never met 
again. They, of whom it had been said, as of the early Christians, 
that "they possessed all things in common," fill graves as widely 
separated as the east is from the west. The lady whose charity gave 
them education, and the opportunity for usefulness and distinction, has 
now in her possession both the golden fragments, sent her with dying 
messages — the one from Vera Cruz, the other from Ceylon. 



Parting on the sounding shore 

Brothers twain were sighing ; 
Mingle with the ocean's roar, 

Words of love undying ; 
A ring of gold was severed then 

And each to each the giver, 
His faith renewed in mystic sign 

And bound his heart forever. 



DIVIDING THE TESSERA. 139 

" Broken thus the token be, 

While o'er earth we wander ; 
One to thee and one to me — 

Rudely torn asunder ; 
But though divided we are one — 

This scar the bond expresses, 
When all our painful wandering's done, 

Will close and leave no traces ! 

" Warmly in thy bosom hide, 

The golden voice, I love thee ! 
Keep it there whate'er betide, 

To guard thee and to prove thee ! 
And should the token e'er be lost, 

Or chilled, what now is riven, 
I'll know that death has sent the frost 

And look for thee in heaven !" 

Parted on the sounding shore, 

Each the token keeping, 
Met those Brothers never more — 

In death they're widely sleeping. 
But yet love's victory was won, — 

The scar that bond expresses, — 
Their long and painful wandering's done — 

Hath closed and left no traces ! 



Pgfe xil. 



The custom of lodge-refreshment, time-honored and sanctioned by 
the example of the noblest and best of American Masons, might well 
be renewed. The Order with us has too much of the pulpit and too 
little of the table. A due intermixture of both was what the Craft in 
the olden time regarded. 

There's Pillars II. and Columns V. 

Support and grace our balls of truth, 
But none such sparkling pleasure give 
As the Column that adorns the S'. 

"High Xll ." the Junior Warden calls — 

His Column grants the festive hour, 
And through our antiquated halls, 
Rich streams of social gladness pour. 

'Tis then, all toil and care forgot, 

The Bond indissoluble seems: 
'Tis then the world's a happy spot, 

And hope, unmixed with sadness, gleams. 
High XII. : I've shared the festive hour 

"With those who realize the bliss, 

And felt that life contains no more 

Than sparkles in the joys of this. 

What memories hover round the time ! 

What forms rise up to call it blest ! 
Departed Friends : why should it dim 

Our joys to know that they're at rest ! 



THE CHECKERED PAVEMENT. 141 

High XII. ! how they rejoiced to hear ! 

Quickly each implement laid down, 
Glad to exchange for toil and care 

And heavy Cross, a heavenly Crown ! 

The Comrades all, by 3 x 3, 

Linked in the golden chain of Truth, 
A hearty welcome pledge with me 
To the Column that adoms the S' ! 
High XH. : and never be the hour 

Less free, less brotherly than now ! 
High XH. : a rich libation pour 

To joys that none but Masons know ! 



}£ €\}£tkmb |)atammi 



There is no emblem teaches a more practical every-day lesson to a 
Freemason than the Mosaic pavement, denoting human life checkered 
with good and evil. 

I, on the White Square, you on the Black ; 
/ at fortune's face, you at her lack; 
Friends to me many, friends to you few ; 
"What, then, dear Brother, binds me to you ? 

This, the Great Covenant in which we abide — 
Hearts charged with sympathy — 

Hands opened wide — 
Lips filled with comfort, 
And God to provide. 



14"2 THE CHECKERED PAVEMENT. 

I, in life's valley, you on its crest; 

J at its lowest, you at its best ; 

I sick and sorroicing, you hale and free; 

"What, then, dear Brother, binds you to me ? 

This, the Great Covenant in which we abide — 

Hearts charged with sympathy — 

Hands ojiened wide — 

Lips filled with comfort, 

And God to provide. 

They in death's slumber, we yet alive ; 
They freed from labor, we yet to strive ; 
They paid and joyful, we tired and sad — 
What, then, to us, Brother, bindeth the dead ? 

This, the Great Covenant in which we abide — 
Hearts charged with sympathy — 

Hands opened wide — 
Lips filled with comfort, 
And God to provide. 

Let none be comfortless, let none despair ; 

Lo round the Black grouped the White Ashlars are ! 

Stand by each other, black fortune defy, 

All these vicissitudes end by and by. 

Keep the Great Covenant wherein we abide — 
" Hearts charged with sympathy — 

Hands opened wide — 
Lips filled with comfort, 
And God will provide !" 



€lr* Jfoms of ibe $ obg*. 

It is admitted by lecturers and Masonic speakers, that the true 
acoustical focus of the lodge is near the Northeast corner. This is 
attributed to the fact that it was there each of us received those first 
impressions on which to build our future moral and masonic edifice. 
Certainly in no other part of the room can the speaker give utterance, 
so truly and eloquently, to the genuine sentiments of the Order; and 
the unhappy debates which sometimes disturb the harmony of our 
meetings, would be obviated were speakers required to take their 
stand at the focus of the lodge ! 

Oh, when before the lodge we stand, 

Its walls hung round with mystic lines, 
And for the loving, listening band, 

Draw truth and light from those designs ; — 
See on the eight, the Open Word, 

Which lendeth grace to every thought ! 
See on the left, the Mason's lord ! 

'Tis chosen well, the sacred spot ! 



For there our youthful minds received 

The earliest impress of that light, 
Whose perfect radiance, believed, 

Will lead the soul to Heavenly height. 
Around the spot there clusters much 

Of Masons' lore ; and dull were he 
Who, standing in the light of such, 

Cannot unveil our Mystery. 



144 THE DECAYED LODGE. 

If in Instruction's voice there come 

A tone of hatred, if, alas, 
The love and music of our home 

Be changed to discord and disgrace, — 
'Tis that the speaker has forgot 

The solemn words first uttered there, — 
His feet have left the sacred spot, 

His heart and tongue no wisdom bear. 

But when the soul is kindled high, 

With love, such love as angels know — 
And when the tongue trips lightly by 

The truth and love our emblems show ; — 
"When round the lodge, the eye and cheek 

Prove how congenial is the theme, 
No further need the speaker seek — 

Good spirits stand and speak with him ! 



(3% Jtagito ^otyt. 

These walls are tottering to decay ; 

There's dampness on the stair ; 
But well I mind me of the day 

When two-score men met here : 
When two-score brothers met at night, 

The full round Moon above, 
To weave the mystic chain of light 

With holy links of love. 



THE DECAYED LODGE. 145 

But now the lightest of the train, 

In early grave is bowed ; 
The chain is broke, the holy chain — 

The Master's with his God ! 
The wailing notes were heard one day, 

Where cheerful songs are best, 
And two-score Brothers bore away 

Their Master to his rest. 

The South, that pleasant voice, is still, 

That spoke the joys of noon ; 
The West, that told the Master's will, 

Has set as sets the sun. 
The sun may rise, may stand, may fall, 

But these will stand no more — 
No more the faithful craft to call, 

Or scan their labors o'er. 

I'll weep the rending of this chain, 

As Jestjs wept his love ! 
This haunted spot ! what shall restrain 

The tears these memories move ! 
Where two-score Brothers met at night, 

There's solitude and gloom ; 
Let grief its sacred train invite 

To this old haunted room. 



Cjje §mlx%t 

A brother, known and beloved for his Masonic and general worth, 
and had in fraternal contemplation for the highest honors of the Craft, 
was killed in a duel. His lodge, though warmly solicited, refused to 
bury him with Masonic honors, but accompanied his remains to the 
grave in citizens' apparel. 

Hark, bow the air resounds with death ! 

Lo, to the tomb a Mason comes ! 
But where is the badge the Mason hath — 
Type of a life beyond the tombs ? 
Is there not one in all the band, 

Owns Mm a Brother now ! 
Speak, ye that weep around the bier, 
And say where the honors were his due ! 

How he was loved these tear-drops show — 

How he was honored midst our band ; 
For he had a heart for every woe, 
For each distress a liberal hand. 
Bright in the East our rising sun, 
Proud viewed we his career ; — 
But now that to-day his race is run, 
We fling no Cassia on his bier. 

Whispering low the cause we yield — 

History of his unworthy death — 
False honor called him to the field 

And death the erring Brother met / 



THE TRACING-BOARD. 147 

No dirge from us can o'er him swell, 

No banners round kirn wave ; 
Emblem of faith we dare not strew 

Upon the sad, self-murderer's grave. 

Ceases the knell of sorrow now — 

But long will the heavy sigh be drawn ; 
Vacant the East ! ah, heavy woe ! 
Our "Wisdom, Strength and Beauty gone. 
But worst the grief this thought will bring 

To our fraternal home — 
Brightest and dearest, thou art passed 
Dishonored to an early tomb! 



\t ^raattjg-lBoarb. 



The following was composed to be accompanied, in the recitation, 
by the emblems respectively named. Twelve of these are selected as 
the most significant of the furniture and jewels of the lodge. 

Tools and implements of Architecture are selected to imprint on 
the memory wise and serious truths. 

A bundle of Maxims, quaint, ancient and true, 
A Code of good morals for me, Sirs, and you, 
To warn us and guide us in what we shall do. 

The Square is Morality, just and benign — 

The Level, Equality, nature's design — 

The Plumb, it is Rectitude speaks in that line. 



148 THE TRACING-BOARD. 

The swift flight of Time, by the Hour-Glass shown, 
The Gauge so distributes that each hath its own — 
The Compass restricts us to Prudence alone. 

The Trowel is Peace, of all lessons the best — 
The Gavel, excrescences helps to divest — 
The Sheaf, Masons' wages assures us and rest. 

The Cable-tow speaks of a Covenant sure — 
The Apron sweet innocence, lamb-like and pure — 
The Dagger of what the true heart will endure. 

What riches of wisdom and treasures of bliss ! 

Instructed by them none can labor amiss ; 

If tempted with passion, be cautioned by this ! 

When discord appears, spread the Cement of love ! 
When vice would o'ercome you this Monitor prove, 
When falling, from this learn uprightly to move ! 

Should death be forgotten, recall the great theme, 
For lo, life is passing in this passing stream ! 
With Fervency toil, ere your wages you claim ! 

Blest Purity's spirit, celestial and clean 
Unsoiled by life's errors, this emblem is seen ! 
With this clear the conscience of all that is mean! 

One third of the day give to Mercy and Prayer ! 

Remember the Covenant's registered there ! 

Let this speak of Judgment and traitors, beware I 



FELLOW CRAFTS' SONG. 149 

A bundle of Maxims, quaint, ancient and true, 
A Code of good morals for me, Sirs, and you, 
To warn us and wuide us in what we shall do. 



Jftllofo Crafts' Song. 



Founded upon the scriptural passage appropriate to this Degree, 
viz., Amos yii, V, 8. 



His laws inspire our being — 

Our light is from His sun ; 
Beneath the Eye All-Seeing, 

Our Mason's work is done : 
His Plumb-line in uprightness 

Our faithful guide shall be ; 
And in the Source of brightness 

Our -Railing eyes shall see. 

Thou, Father, art the Giver 
To every earnest prayer ! 

O, be the Guide forever 
To this, our Brother dear ! 

By law and precept holy, 
By token, word, and sign, 

Exalt him, now so lowly, 

Upon this GRAND DESIGN. 



150 THE TEACHEK TO HIS PUPILS. 

Within thy Chamber name him 

A "Workman, wise and true ! 
While loving Crafts shall claim him 

In bonds of friendship due : 
Thus shall these walls extol Thee 

And future ages prove 
What Masons ever call Thee, 

The God of Truth and Love ! 



Ck Ceiute to ps |1upils. 

The first session of the National Masonic School of Instruction". 
at Louisville, Kentucky, May, 1859, was a scene of great interest to 
the participants. The assemblage was large and enthusiastic, repre- 
senting many portions of the country. As a Farewell, the writer 
made the following his Valedictory as President of the School : 

From the hills of old Virginia, from the meadows fat and rare, 
From the banks of broad Ohio, and of others broad and fair, — 
From the borders of our neighboring States, true neighbors each 

they stand, 
You have come responsive, Brothers, and have gripped me by 

the hand. 

You have brought me words of greeting, — words I never can 

forget ; — 
Have given me light my eyes will see till life's poor sun has 

set; — 
You have told with signs significant, your messages so true, 
And now, at parting, one kind word I offer, Friends, to you. 



THE TEACHER TO HIS PUPILS. 151 

A goodly group around us ! the thoughtful air of Greene — 
The cheerful gaze of Webster, — and Williams' modest mien, — 
The chivalry of Bullock, that courteous look and bow, — 
The sterling sense, the honest voice, the gentleness of Howe. 

These are the types of all who've sat unwearied 'neath the voice 
That told of Masons' labors and of Masons' well-earned joys; 
Deep in the souls of these have sunk th' unchangeable and true, 
The mighty Covenants that bind, dear Brothers, me and you. 

Here too, those welcomed lights have shone, ay, welcome as the 

sun, 
Whose fame as skillful builders has in distant lands been won — 
The veterans Perm and Norris, Tracey, vigilant and leal, 
And Hunt, the genial-hearted, and Bayless, true as steel. 

To all who tcorh as these work, to all who love like them, 

To all who build as they build the New Jerusalem, 

Be wages such as they shall have, when standing in the West 

They hear the Master call them, "Come, ye faithful, to your 

rest." 

True, zealous, loving men ! on this tempestuous, rocky shore 
I may not meet — ah sad to think — not meet or greet you more ; 
Each day speaks louder in my ears the uncertainties of time, 
And death amidst life's music louder peals his solemn chime. 

Then each Farewell ! bear homeward light our fathers well, 

approved, 
Set up the Pillars, rear the Walls ; — 'twas work our fathers loved: 
Time will your fond devotion to unending ages tell ; 
God will o'ersee and bless you ! Brothers, faithfully, farewell ! 



&nhnh ia k Jfrmttr. 

Written in 1859. 

Dear Brother, 'tis no light design, 
Inspires this desultory line — 
When gratitude and love combine 

There's surely something in it ! 
My thoughts involuntary flow 
To that bright season spent with you ; 
A tribute to the same is due 

And now I will begin it. 

If I should change my homestead place 
From Old Kentucky turn my face, 
I do with truthfulness confess 

An Alabama notion : 
Such ardor in our noble cause, — 
Such knowledge of our ancient laws — 
The very memory of it draws 

My soul with strong emotion. 

And you with ripest wisdom fraught 

You, mild, experienced, firm — who've brought 

The hearts of all to love, and taught 

Them "Wisdom, Strength, and Beauty — 
Of all the thousands whom I know 
Co-laborers on the Mountain's brow, 
Around our mystic Temple, few 

Perform like you their duty ! 



THE TWO VISITS. 153 

Clopton and Wood : — God bless the twain ! 
There's hope while such as they remain, 
"Whose every thought and word is gain 

To the old Craft that love them ! 
Far hence their final summons be — 
May children's children crown their knee, 
And grateful tears bedew the tree 

That's set at last above them ! 



Cjj* ®to Sisrts. 

I saw him first one snowy winter night — 

But summer's fire glowed in his youthful breast — 

A humble seeker for Masonic light, 

A pilgrim journeying for Masonic rest : 

From the bright orient southward to the west 
Darkly he journeyed, while our eyes inquired 

If form, and heart, and garb fulfilled our test ? 
From the ordeal he came, as one inspired, 
And glad amongst us stood, enlightened and attired. 

Once more I saw him — but his eyes were hid, 
Hoodwinked by death ; as with an iron band 

His limbs were fettered ; 'neath the coffin-lid 
The strong man lay extended, and his hand 

Whose grip had thrilled me, ah ! how dead it spanned 



154 THE TWO VISITS. 

His pulseless breast ! yet round our brother's head 
Thrice ice encircled, though with grief unmanned, 
And with respectful tenderness we spread 
Upon his breast green sprigs, fit presents to the dead. 

For he had journeyed further, learned a lore 
Profounder, drank in purer light than we, 

And of desired treasure gathered more 
Than dwells in all the mines of Masonry ! 

What unto us is veiled in mystery 

"Was real to him, and by his Master's side, 

Knowing as he was known, the dead was free ! 
Therefore we paid our homage to the dead, 
And " we shall meet again our Brother dear " we said. 

And we shall meet again, not as in quest 

Of light Masonic, nor as in that time 
When last I saw him pallid in his rest, 

But in a Lodge transcendently sublime ! 
Death there shall ring no funeral chime — 

No weeping band shall go about its dead, — 
But light and life inspire an endless hymn : 

Ah happy we whose very grave may shed 

Effulgent hope and joy as round its brink we tread I 



§*o%r's fast $qn*k 



A Freemason dying, sent a message to the writer, asking him to 
come and pronounce the Masonic Eulogy over his remains. But the 
distance was too great and the message too long delayed. 



How tender must the love of Masons be 

When in the dying moment they can think 

Of one another ! few the human ties 

That are not severed by the approach of death ! 

He quenches common friendships ! blunts the edge 

Of mere acquaintance ! rends the cable-tow 

Of social ties or scatters them like chaff ! 

But on the love of Masons — golden chain, 

Stronger than iron — death can lay no hand ! 

Powerless, conquered, stingless, hateful death ! 

Brother ! when struggling thus in the last fight — 

That fight I too must struggle in and soon — 

Did you remember me ? did the bright hours 

We sat together midst the Sons of Light 

Come o'er your spirit like a happy dream ? 

Did you recall the Mason-songs we sung ? 

Or what in sweet Companionship was told 

Of gentle Ruth and loving Martha pure 

While from the sisters round came answering tears ? 



156 A FESTIVAL ODE. 

Those scenes delightful I can ne'er forget ! 

Would I had seen you in the conquering hour 

That I, too, might prepare for victory ! 

If the blest spirits of the just return 

To this cold world, if Mason-love hath power 

To call one visitor from brighter scenes, 

May I have grace with God to see again, 

When I shall die, those whom I loved below ! 

To tell me how they won the victory 

And what the joys that wait me in the skies ! 



% JMftai ®b*. 

"Hark, from the lofty dome, 
Hark, from the Mason's home 

Comes a sweet song : 
Words full of mystery, 
Virtue and charity, 
Tuned unto melody 

Rise from the throng. 

Chorus. — Joy, the Masons' year is ended, 

Freres of St. John ! 
Joy, which every month attended, 
Pains with brightest pleasures blended, 

Ended and gone ; 
Crafts of the temple, to your altar throng, 
Children of light, upraise the festive song. 



A FESTIVAL ODE. 157 

Come, oil ye newly made, 
Late to our altar led, 

Hasten, oh youth ; 
Gone is the gloomy night, 
Sweet is the mystic light, 
Broke on the dazzled sight, 

Glowing with truth. 

Age, with the locks of snow, 
Time's burden bending low, 

Fathers, oh come ; 
"Welcome the veteran here — 
With every added year, 
Dearer and yet more dear, 

To Masons' home. 

Master, your toil is done ; 
Brethren, the prize is won ; 

Hail the new year ; 
Pledge every soul again, 
Strengthen the mystic chain, 
Long may the lodge remain 

"Without a peer. 



Cenimmal #tre. 

How the souls of friends departed 
Brood around this joyful scene ! 
Tender, brave, and faithful-hearted, 
They have left their memories green. 

Could we view them, 
Smiles upon each face were seen. 

As they scan our gladsome meeting, 

It recalls a thousand joys: 
As they list our cheerful greeting, 

'Tis to them a glorious voice : 
'Tis the echo 

Of a hundred years of joys ! 

One by one those loved ones perished, 
But they left the chain still wound ; 

Every virtue that they cherished 
Here is found as here they found : 

Thus in heaven 
Blessed souls to ours are bound. 

So shall we, tho' long departed, 
"When a hundred years are sped, 

Join the brave and faithful-hearted, 
Who around this lodge shall tread ; 

And our memories 
Shall be cherished here, though dead. 



(Bxnbt of % 6raixb $$tastei\ 

Over the grave of the Hon. Henry Gee, Past Grand Master of f 
Masons in Florida, is a marble monument of rare beauty and pro- 
priety. The writer visited the spot, January 24, 1858. The place of 
interment was selected by the deceased ; it is in a grove of oaks near 
the verge of a hill. The birds sing their sweetest through the Florida 
winters, and the evergreens, whose brightness is reflected upon the 
marble surface of the monument, give no indications of mortality. 

" May I, when given to dust, be laid 
In the o'erarching oak-trees' shade ! 
Not midst the crowded ranks of those 
In life commingled, friends or foes ; 
Not 'neath the dust of trampling feet ; 
Not where the mourners frequent meet ; 
But far from life's poor turmoil, laid 
In the o'erarching oak-trees' shade." 



'Tis done ; this sweet retired scene 

Is nature's own delightful green ; 

No voice but the lamenting dove 

That sighs and murmurs of its love ; 

No footsteps but the tender tread 

Of those who loved, who love the dead ; 

No passion but the sigh subdued, 

Breathed for the friend who's gone to God. 



160 GRAVE OT THE GRAND MASTER. 

The pilgrim, dusty from a path, 
That circles round the weary earth, 
Stands mutely pleased : — Twas well to place 
The Master on a couch like this ! 
The Builders, scattered as they be, 
Sleeping on plain, and mount, and sea, 
Dispersed until the trumpet's blast — 
Few of them have such fitting rest. 



How searchingly that awful Eye 
Reads the impress of memory ! 
Death cannot hide a brother dead, 
But the Omniscient Eye will read 
Each act, each word, each secret thought, 
Through a long life conceived or wrought ; 
Well for the sleeper if his life 
Endure a scrutiny so rife ! 

But thou, oh, Master of the craft, 
A spotless memory hath left ; 
The pitying heart, the loving soul, 
The liberal hand to crown the whole. 
And zeal in toils of mystic plan, 
Which honor God and honor man — 
These are thy jewels — they will try 
The ken of the All-Seeing Eye. 



RISE up: he calleth thee. 161 

Rest peaceful, then, while Nature sighs, 
And graces where thy body lies ! 
Lift high that column many a year, 
To call the grateful Builders near ! 
Wait patient for the mystic call 
From out the depths of Heaven's hall ; — 
"Ye Builders, Men from many lands, 
Come to the house not made with hands !" 



It might have pleased the great Creator of heaven and earth to 
have made man independent of all other beings ; but as dependence is 
one of the strongest bonds of society, mankind were made dependent 
on each other for protection and security, as they thereby enjoy better 
opportunities of fulfilling the duties of reciprocal love and friendship. 

He calleth us to words and deeds of love, 

As spring calls forth from wintry crust the flowers ; 
He breathes within us spirit from above 

As zephyrs breathe within the sunny bowers ; 
He saith, Arise, shake off the dust and go 

Where duty calls, where sorrow hath its sway ; 

He points our feet the proper path, and lo, 
He promiseth to be with us, alway ! 



jjark <§ttxn. 



'Tis done, the dark decree is said, 

That called our friend away ; 
Submissive bow the sorrowing head, 

And bend the lowly knee ; 
We will not ask why God has broke 

Our Pillar on its stone, 
But humbly yield us to the stroke, 

And say " His will be done." 

At last the weary head has sought 

In earth its long repose ; 
And weeping freres have hither brought 

Their chieftain to his close ; 
We held his hand, we filled his heart, 

While heart and hand could move, 
Nor will we from his grave depart 

But with the rites of love. 

This grave shall be a garner, where 

We'll heap our golden corn ; 
And here, in heart, we'll oft repair, 

To think of him that's gone ; 
To speak of all he did and said, 

That's wise, and good, and pure, 
And covenant o'er the hopeful dead, 

In vows that shall endure. 

162 



THE. PURSUIT OF FRANKLIN. 163 

Oh Brother, bright and loving frere, 

Oh spirit tree and pure, 
Breathe us one gush of spirit air, 

From off the heavenly shore, 
And say, when these hard toils are done, 

And the Grand Master calls, 
Is there for every wearied one 

Place in the heavenly halls ! 



&ht ^pursuit cf JFranklm. 

When Dr. Kane, the Arctic navigator, left New York in search of 
Sir John Franklin, he set the Masonic Square and Compass in large 
characters upon his foresaiL He visited a lodge in Newfoundland at 
his brief call there. The flag taken and left, by his orders, nearest 
the North Pole, was the Masonic flag It was an incentive to the zeal- 
ous search made by our intrepid countrymen, that Franklin was re- 
ported to be a Freemason. 

The following lines were written in 1853, upon his setting out on 
the philanthropic errand. It is needless to say, however, that the 
writer's prediction failed in its fulfillment. 

Midst polar snows and solitude, 

Eight weary years the voyager lies, 
Ice-bound upon the frozen flood, 

"While expectation vanishes ; 
Ah ! many a hopeless tear is shed 
For Franklin numbered with the dead ! 



1 04 THE PURSUIT OF FRANKLIN. 

Midst joys of home, and well-earned fame, 
Young, healthful, honored, there is one 

Who pines to win a nobler name, 
And feels his glory but begun ; 

His heart is with the voyager lost, 

Midst polar solitude and frost. 

The voice from off the frozen flood, 
Appeals in trumpet-tones for aid ; 

Tis heard, 'tis answered — swift abroad 
The flag is flung, the sail is spread; 

That sail on whose pure face we see 

Thy symbol, honored Masonry ! 

Away, on glorious errand, now, 
Thou hero of a sense of right ! 

Success be on thy gallant prow, 
Thou greater than the sons of might t 

Thy flag, the banner of the free, 

Oh, may it lead to victory ! 

Is there some chain of sympathy, 
Flung thus across the frozen seas ? 

is there some strange, mysterious tie, 

That joins these daring men ? — there is I 
This, honored, healthful, free from want, 

Is bound to that in Covenant ! 



T 1 1 K PURSUIT OF F B A N K L I N . 165 

For though these twain have never met, 
Isot pressed the hand, nor joined the heart, 

In unison their spirits beat, 
Brothers in the Masonic art ; — 

One. hi the hour of joy and peace — 

One, in the hour of deep distress. 



And by the Symbols, best of those 
Time-honored on our ancient wall, — 

And by the prayer that ceaseless flows, 
Upward from every Mystic Hall — 

And by thine own stout heart and hand, 

Known, marked, and loved in every land — 



Thou shalt succeed — his drooping eye 
Shall catch thy banner, broad and bright — 

That symbol he shall yet descry, 
And know a Brother in the sight ! 

Ah, noble pair ! which happier then, 

Of those tw r o daring, dauntless men ! 



fonofrg 10 % Ijojt. f). €. Anther. 



The history of Freemasonry in the United States from 1826 to 
1861 bears many traces of the wisdom and zeal of Mr. Tucker, long 
Grand Master of Masons in Vermont. During the reverses sustained 
by the Masonic order thirty years since, he was a tower of strength 
to the desponding in his own State, where antimasonry secured its 
firmest foothold. His ready pen was ever at the service of the Insti- 
tution. His decisions upon mooted questions were unexcelled for 
clearness and soundness. His knowledge of ritualisms gave him a 
pre-eminence as a working Mason, while his genial spirit and manner 
secured him popularity with all who knew him. 

The following Monody forms a part of the " Eulogy" pronounced 
by the writer iu January, 1862, in the presence of the Grand Lodge of 
Vermont : 



Dead 1 and where now those earnest loving eyes 

Which, kindled in so many eyes the light ? 
Have they departed from our earthly skies 

And left no rays to illuminate the night ? 

Dead ! and where now that heart of sympathy 

That welled and yearned, and with true love o'erflowed t 

Oh heart of love, is the rich treasure dry ? 
Forever sealed, what once such gifts bestowed ? 

Dead ! and where now that gen'rous, nervous hand 
That thrilled each nerve within its generous clasp ? 

Will it no more enlink the mystic band, 

Hallowing and strengthening all within its grasp ? 



SONG AND FREEMASONRY. 167 

Heart, eyes and hand, to dust are all consign'd— 

It was his lot, for he Avas born of earth ; 
But the rich treasures of his master-mind 

Abide hi Heaven, for there they had their birth. 

Abide in Hea/o'n ! oh the enkindling trust ! 

The record of his deeds remaineth here : 
The Acacia blooms beside his silent dust 

To point unerringly to yon bright sphere. 

Then, though the shattered column mark his fate, 
And weeping Virgin tell th' unfinished Fane, 

Not altogether are we desolate, 

For oh, departed friend, we meet again ! 



S01T0 atttr Jtamttsonrjr, 



Addressed to a lady who has written various Masonic productions 
of merit. 

Rich is song when tuned to passion, 

Love, benevolence, or joy — 
Vast its power, and blest its mission ; — 

Saints in heaven the notes employ ; 
Heaven itself resounds with song, 
Tuned by an unnumbered throng. 



1 68 SONG AND FREEMASONRY. 

But its power is best extended, 
When, to bless the Sons of Toil, 

Masons' joys with songs are blended, 
Khyrning Corn and Wine, and Oil ; 

Then it tin-ills the inner sense, 

Driving gloomy shadows hence. 

Sister, from your heart are welling, 
Thoughts attuned to sweetest song ! 

But the sweetest yet are telling 
Of the ancient Mason-throng ; 

Telling of its Tenets three, 

Faith and Hope, and Charity ! 

Still to us your muse be giyen — 
Ours the genial spirit-birth ; 

Sing the Sabbath-rest of Heaven, 
Sing the six days' toil of earth, 

Festive joys, and sacred grief, 

Love fraternal, truth, relief. 

Then, when death his object gaining. 
Stills the answer of your lyre, 

These the gems of song remaining 
Other genius shall inspire, 

And the Craft, in deathless lays, 

Shall embalm their Poet's praise. 



Wreathe tlie mourning badge around- 
Once again that funeral sound ! 
From his friends and from his home ; 
Bear him, Brothers, to the tomb ! 

"While they journey weeping, slow, 
Silent, thoughtful let us go ; 
Silent — life to him is sealed ; 
Thoughtful — death's to him revealed. 

How his life-path has been trod, 
Brothers we will leave to God ; 
Friendship's mantle, trusting faith, 
Lends a fragrance, even to death. 

Here, amidst the things that sleep, 
Lay him down — his rest is deep : 
Death has triumphed — loving hands 
Cannot raise him from his bands. 

But the Emblems that we shower, 
Tell us there's a mightier power ; 
O'er the strength of death and hell, 
Judah's Lion shall, prevail ! 



170 CKYPT IK THE CORXER-STO 

Dust to dust, the dark decree — 
Soul to God, the soul is free ! 
Leave him with the lowly lain — 
Brother, we shall meet again ! 



(Crnpt in tbc Corner- .Stmt*. 

It is a legend in Masonry that the Corner-stone of Solomon's 
Temple, sunk firmly in the northeast corner of the holy Mount, con- 
tains many objects strange and curious. Among them is a collection of 
all the vices and passions that were found in the hearts of the Temple- 
builders when they came up fn>m Phenicia to undertake the work. 
These, King Solomon was enabled, by his wisdom, to detect, and by 
his Power, to withdraw from their working-places, and to confine them 
seiurily as already stated. 

Since that period, whenever a Mason-brother exhibits any passion 
or impropriety forbidden by his Covenants, he may correctly be 
charged with having " robbed the corner-stone of King Solomon's 
Temple !" 

Build up, ye Crafts, the Sacred Fane — 
Raise up its walls as high as heaven — 
But shape your blocks and lay them there, 

Upon the pattern given. 
Our Master bade us labor so — 
He marked the years, three score and ten, 
And gives us many a noontide hour, 

To cheer his toiling men. 
We build no walls for time to gnaw, 
No halls for men who yield to death ; — 
Our pattern is the perfect Law, 
And God our service hath ! 



OUR FUTURE MEETING. 171 

He reined the passions' evil train ; 

He quenched the fires within the breast ; 

He sunk them deep beneath the earth, 

And there we bid them rest ; 
He laid in love the Corner-stone, — 
A firm unshaken Rock 'tis found , 
Our fathers built on this alone, 

For this is holy ground ! 
We build no walls for time to gnaw, 
No halls for men who yield to death ; — 
Our pattern is the perfect Law, 

And God our service hath ! 



(L^ur future Hlcctirrg. 

Where types are all fulfilled — 

Where mystic shades are real — 
Where aching hands and hearts are stilled, 

And death has set his seal — 
In that bright land called heaven, 

Dear Friend, we'll meet once more ! 
The token in thy parting given, 

Points to a heavenly shore. 

'Tis this, our signs have taught — 

Our symbols old and trjie ; 
'Tis this upon our work is wrought, 

Which every frere can view ; 



172 EMBLEMS OF THE CKAFT. 

From the first line we traced, 

On the foundation walls, 
To that bright stone, the last, the best, 

The glory of our halls. 

Oh, what a land of joy, 

Hast thou beheld, my Friend ! 
Oh, what ineffable employ 

Thy faithful heart has gained ! 
Thy Brother, weary, worn, 

Longs for the same bright dome, 
Where all the week's hard service done, 

He'll have thy welcome home. 



(fcmMems oi % Craft. 



The following lines were written to be accompanied by appropriate 
movements which will easily suggest themselves to the enlightened 
reader : 

Who wears the Square upon his breast, 
Does, in the sight of God attest, 

And in the sight of man, 
That all his actions do compare 
With the Divlne, th' unerring squake 

That squares great Virtue's plan : 
And he erects his Edifice 
By this design, and this and this ! 



EMBLEMS OF THE CRAFT. 173 

Who wears the Level says that pride 
Does not within his soul abide, 

Nor foolish vanity ; 
That man has but a common doom, 
And from the cradle to the tomb 

A common destiny : 
That he erects his Edifice 
By this design, and this and this ! 

Who wears the G ; that type divine ! 
Whose very thought should banish sin, 

Trusts but in God alone ; 
His Father, Maker, Friend, he knows — 
He vows, and pays to God his vows, 

Before th' Eternal throne : 
And he erects his Edifice 
By this design, and this and this ! 

Who wears the Plumb, behold how true 
And just his steps ! and could we view 

The workings of his soul, 
Each secret thought, so pure, and good, 
By the stern line of Rectitude, 

Points truly to that goal : 
And he erects his Edifice 
By this design, and this and this ! 



174 solomon's midnight visit, 

See Wisdom, Strength and Beauty too, 
In each design our Fathers drew 

Here on the Tracing-board ! 
Each has a moral in it given 
That tells us of a coming Heaven 

Whose Mastek is the Lord ! 
Each bids us build on this, on this, 
An everlasting Edifice ! 



Solomon's Ittibwglrt $isii 

It is one of the most charming traditions that past generations 
have entrusted to the present, this of King Solomon's Midnight Visit. 
The legend is that the Mighty Sage, weary with protracted waiting 
for the Resurrection Day, is permitted an hour each night to roam 
over the earth. Naturally looking up Masonic lodges, he hears the 
gavel-sounds of those that are working past midnight, enters them, 
though invisible, and infuses a spirit of wisdom and love into every 
bosom. Thus it has long been observed of the Brethren returning 
home at so late an hour, that they are fraught with a peculiarly 
brotherly spirit, explained best by this hypothesis of the Midnight 
Visit of King Solomon ! 

In a deep, rocky tomb great King Solomon lies, 

Sealed up till the judgment from all prying eyes ; 

The Square on his breast, and his kingly brow Crowned — 

His Gavel and Sceptre with fillettings wound ; 

At midnight, impatient, his spirit comes forth, 

And haunts, for a season, the places of earth. 



Solomon's midnight visit. 175 

He flits like a thought, to the chambers of kings, — 
To the field where red battle has shaken his wings, — 
To the cave where the student his late vigil keeps, — 
To the cell where the prisoner hopelessly weeps ; 
But most, where Freemasons their mystical round 
Continue past midnight, King Solomon's found ! 

Oh, then, when the bell tolls Low XTT. do we hear 
A rustling, a whispering startle the ear ! 
A deep solemn murmur — while Crafts stand in awe 
At something the eye of a mortal ne'er saw ! 
We iknow it, toe feel it, we welcome the King 
Whose spirit takes part in the anthems we sing ! 

And, then, every heart beats responsive and warm — 

The Acacia blooms freshly — we heed not the storm ; 

Our tapers are starlit, and lo, from above, 

There seems as descending the form of a dove ! 

'Tis the Emblem of Peace which King Solomon sends, 

To model and pattern the work of his friends. 

His friends, loving Brothers, as homeward you go, 
Bear Peace in your bosoms, let Peace sweetly flow ! 
In Concord, in Friendship, in Brotherly Love 
Be faithful, — no Emblem so true as that dove ! 
The world will confess then with cheerful accord, 
You have met with King Solomon at midnight abroad ! 



Cbc Spirit of WLnian. 



In the settlement of long-pending difficulties among the Canadian 
Masons, the writer was called in in July, 1858, with the celebrated 
Judge Tucker, Grand Master of Vermont, to suggest proper terms of 
reconciliation. The pleasing task being performed, and the Union 
complete, the following lines were read at a Banquet that most agree- 
ably terminated the meeting : 

There never was occasion, and there never was an hour, 
When spirits of Peace on angel- wings so near our heads did soar; 
There's no event so glorious on the page of time to appear, 
As the union of the Brotherhood, sealed by our coming here. 

'Twas in the hearts of many, 'twas in the prayers of some, 
That the good old days of Brotherly Love might yet in mercy 

come ; 
'Twas whispered in our Lodges, in the E. and S. and W., 
That the time was nigh when the plaintive cry our God would 

hear and bless. 

But none believed the moment of fruition was at hand ; 
How could we deem so rich a cup was waiting our command ! 
It came like rain in summer-drought, on drooping foliage poured, 
And bade us look henceforth for help, in all our cares, to God ! 

The news has gone already upon every wind of heaven ; 
The wire, the press, the busy tongue, the intelligence has given ; 
And every one who heard it and who loves the Sons of Peace 
Has cried, " Praise God, the God of Love ! may God this Union 

bless !" 

176 



THE SPIRIT OF UNION. 177 

Vermont takes up the story — her " old man eloquent " — 
Long be his days among us, on deeds of mercy spent — 
He speaks for the Green Mountains, and you heard him say last 
night, 

God that I have lived till noAV to see this happy sight !" 



Kentucky sends you greeting — from her broad and generous 

bound, 
Once styled of all the Western wild, "the Dark and Bloody 

Ground." 
She cries aloud, " God bless you ! Heaven's dews be on you shed, 
Who first took care to oe in the right, then boldly went ahead !" 

From yonder constellation, from the Atlantic to the West, 
Where the great pines of Oregon rear up their lofty crest, 
From the flowery glades of Florida, from Minnesota's plain, 
Each voice will say, "Huzza ! huzza ! this craft is one again !" 

Old England soon will hear it ; not always will the cry 
Of suffering Brothers meet her ear, and she pass coldly by : 
There's a chord in British hearts vibrates to every tale of wrong, 
And she will send a welcome and a Brother's hand ere long. 

Then joyful be this meeting, and many more like this, 
As year by year shall circle round, and bring you added bliss ; 
In quarry, hill, and temple, peace , nor cruel word nor thought 
Disturb the perfect harmony the gracious God has wrought. 



178 THE ORIENT. 

But while your walls are thus compact, your cemeut strong and 

good, 
Your workmen diligent and just, a mighty Brotherhood, 
Kemember, Brethren, o'er the earth, and on the raging sea, 
How many a heart there is to-night that sighs, " Remember me !" 

By the sign the world knows nothing of, but to our eyes so 

clear, — 
By the token known in darkest hour, that tells a brother near — 
By the sacred vow and word, and by " the hieroglyphic bright," 
Remember all, the wide world round, who claim your love to- 
night. 



%\t #riwtt. 

Light from the East, 'tis gilded with hope ; 

Star of our faith, thy glory is up ! 

Darkness apace, and watchfulness flee ; 

Earth, lend thy joys to nature and me. 

See, Brothers, see yon dark shadows flee 
Join in His praise, whose glories we be ! 
Now, let these Emblems ages have given, 
Speak to the world, blest Saviour, of thee. 

Lo, we have seen, uplifted on high, 
Star in the East, thy rays from the sky ! 
Lo, we have heard, what joy to our ear — 
Come, ye redeemed, and welcome Him here ! 



THE PASSAGE OF TIME. 179 

Light to the Mind, they've wandered too long — 
Feet to the lame, the weak are made strong — 
Hope to the joyless, freely 'tis given — 
Life to the dead, and music to heaven! 

Praise to the Lord, keep silence no more ! 
Ransomed, rejoice from mountain to shore! 
Streams in the desert, sing as ye stray ! 
Sorrow and sadness, vanish away ! 



<&\t f)a:ssa;0£ xrf QLxmt. 



Lo, the sands swiftly run ! behold our lives 

Dropping like foliage to a solemn close ! 

To-day the bud bright expectation gives — 

To-morrow blossoms to a transient rose — 

Another morn and its whole beauty goes : 

Its leaves are scattered wastefully around, 

No heart remembering — another glows 

Upon the stem — another hope is crowned ; 

And this is human life, the life the dead have found. 

Count well the moments then ; fill up the day ; 
Brothers, let Wisdom's hand your life-plans trace ; 
The Temple will oe finished, though we may 
Not see the Stone exalted to its place ! 
It is enough that God will see and bless ! 



180 THE MODEL MASON 

Labor while it is clay ! there's work for all 

The Trestle-board proclaims it, and, alas ! 

Too soon will night spread o'er its hueless pall — 

Too soon the grave — the grave — from which there's no recall I 

Clouds may obscure us ; slander may detract — 

The foes of truth and rectitude unite — 

But while within our Mystic Sphere we act 

There lives no power can hinder or affright ; 

The Master's Eye still oversees the right ; 

Heaven's books record it with angelic pen ; 

And when death's summons calls us up the height, 

A full reward for labor shall we gain, 

In God's own Temple, freed from sorrow, toil, and pain. 



Ut Stotol Pasoir. 



There's a fine, old Mason in the North, he's genial, wise and true, 
His list of brothers comprehends, dear Brother, me and you ; 
So warm's his heart the snow-blast fails to chill his generous 

blood, 
And his hand is like a giant's when outstretched to man or 

God;— 
Reproach nor blame, nor any shame has checked his course or 

dimmed his fame — 

All honor to his name ! 



THE LOVING TIE. 181 

This fine old Mason is but one of a large family ; 

In every Lodge you'll find Ms kin, you'll find tnern two or three ; 

You'll know them when you see them, for they have then- father's 

face, 
A generous knack of speaking truth and doing good always ; — 
Keproach nor blame, nor any shame, has checked their course 

or dimmed their fame — 

Freemasons is their name ! 

Ah many an orphan smiles upon the kindred as they pass ; 
And many a widow's prayers confess their sympathizing grace ; 
The Father of this Brotherhood himself doth smile to see 
Their works — they're numbered all in heaven those deeds of 

charity ! 
Reproach nor blame, nor any shame can check their course or 

dim their fame, 

All honor to their name ! 



Cjw f jofrrag Ck 



The Loving Tie we feel, 
No language can reveal — 

'Tis seen in the sheen of a fond Brother's eye ; 
It trembles on the ear 
When melting with a tear, 

A Brother bids us cease to sigh. 



182 



Behold how good and how pleasant 
For Brothers in unity to dwell ! 

As heaven's dews are shed 

On Zion's sacred head, 
The blessings of the Lord we feel. 

'Twas at a sufferer's bed 

Now moldering with the dead, 
This BoM, ah, so fond, was discovered first to me I 

I saw his dying eye, 

Light up with speechless joy, 
And I felt how fond that love must be. 

I ever will proclaim 

With gratitude the name 
Of Him, the Divine, who has granted this to me — 

That weary tho' I stray 

O'er nature's rugged way, 
I never, never, alone can be. 

There's some I know will smile 

And others may revile — 
'Tis so as we know with the evil heart alway- 

But if I can but prove 

Through life a Mason's lave, 
I little care what man may say ! 



m four #Iass. 

Life's sands are dropping, dropping, — 

Each grain a moment dies : 
No stay has time, nor stopping — 

Behold how swift he flies ! 
He bears away our rarest — 

They smile and disappear ; 
The cold grave wraps our fairest — 

Each falling grain's a tear. 

Life's sands are softly falling, — 

Death's foot is light as snow : 
'Tis fearful, 'tis appalling, 

To see how swift they flow ; 
To read the fatal warning, 

The sands so plainly tell ; 
To feel there's no returning 

Through death's dark shadowy dale. 

Life's sands give admonition, 

To use the moments well ; 
Each grain bears holy mission, 

And this the tale they tell : — 
" Let zeal than time run faster, 

Each grain some good afford, 
Then at the last, The Master 

Shall double our reward !" 

183 



&\t Cbmful four at figlj XII. 

One hour with you, one hour with you, 

No doubt, nor care, nor strife, 
Is worth a year as ages go, 

In all that sweetens life. 
One hour with you, and you, and you, 

Bright links in mystic chain — 
Oh may we oft these joys renew, 

And often meet again. 

Your eyes with love's own language free, 
Your hand-grips, strong and true, 

Your voice, your heart, do welcome me 
To spend an hour with you. 

I come when morning skies are bright, 

To work my Mason's due — 
To labor is my chief delight, 

And sjjend an hour with you. 

I go when evening gilds the west, 

I breathe the fond adieu, 
But hope again, by fortune blest, 

To spend an hour with you. 

And if perchance the page is closed 

On which my life is given, 
I would beseech the Masons' God 

That we may meet in Heaven ! 



KNIGHT TEMPLAR'S DIRGE. 185 

In Heaven with you, and you, and you, 

To join the blissful strain ; 
Oh may we there these joys renew 

And meet in Heaven again ! 



Precious in the sight of heaven 

Is the place where Christians die ; 
Souls with all their sins forgiven, 

To the courts of glory fly ; 
Every sorrow, every burden, 

Every cross they lay it down ; 
Jesus gives them richest guerdon 

In his own immortal crown. 



Here, above our Brother weeping, 

Through our tears we seize this hope- 
He in Jesus sweetly sleeping, 

Shall awake in glory up ! 
He has borne his cross in sorrow — 

"Weary pilgrim, all forlorn — 
"When the sun shines bright to-morrow, 

'Twill reveal his sparkling crown. 



186 



THE TEST. 

Knights of Christ, your ranks are broken ! 

Close your front ! the foe is nigh ! 
Shield to Shield behold the Token 

As he saw it in the sky ! 
By that Sign so bright, so glorious, 

Ye shall conquek if ye strive, 
And like him, though dead, victorious 

In the courts of Jesus live ! 



£be fei 



The expression " I am willing to be tried again," has a highly 
important use in the theory of Masonry. 

I never have denied — 

I'm willing to be tried — 
A call for sympathy from sorrowing man ; 

My own hard griefs impel 

My heart for such to feel, 
And I am willing to be tried again. 

The claim, so often made, 

For shelter and for aid, 
I never have refused, and never can : 

And though my purse was scant, 

The poor did never want, 
And I am willing to be tried again. 



187 



Is counsel craved, I give — 

What pleasure to relieve 
The doubts my neighbor's spirit that unman ! 

The wisdom given to me, 

To him is offered free, 
And I am willing to be tried again. 

My brother goes astray — 

Ah me, Ihnotc the way, 
The slippery way that lures the thoughtless man ! 

I run to draw him back — 

I point the dangerous track, 
And I am willing to be tried again. 

I've suffered many a wrong, 

From evil hand and tongue — 
I've learned forgiveness from no common Man! 

Forgiveness I have shown, 

As God to me has done, 
And I am willing to be tried again. 

Each night on bended knee, 

The all-seeing Eye doth see 
My body suppliant at a Throne Divine ; 

And there for brothers' need, 

As for my own I plead, 
And I am willing to be tried again. 



188 A DEDICATION. 

I'm dying fast and soon — 
My life has past its noon — 

I've had such premonitions as were plain 
My heart was strong in faith 
That God would smile in death. 

And I am willing to be tried again. 



% jgtbixKixott. 



The author's History of Freemasonry in Kentucky, 1859, was 
dedicated to the Hon. Henry Wingate, Past Grand Master of Ken- 
tucky, in the following lines. That venerable and excellent man died 
September, 1862. 

Type of a generation dropping fast — 

Pillar of faultless worth and dignity, 
This record of the unreturning past 

Is dedicate with loying heart to thee ! 

Of all the mighty Brotherhood whose toils, 
Through three score years perpetuated here, 

Built with fond assiduity our walls, 

Thy services the Craftsmen most revere. 

Long through the desert lead thou safe the way, 
We pilgrims following with faithful feet, 

A Light by night, unerring Guide by day, 
Till on the shores of Canaan we shall meet ! 



Jftms to JTmttgtoit HoQQt. 

This Lodge is No. 310, at Brooklyn, N. Y. 

A fire was kindled on the plain 
Of Lexington that gloweth yet ; 

Each blood-drop from a patriot's heart 
A lasting horror did beget, 

Of tyrant's chain and despot's rule, 

With which our sorrowing' world is full. 



Here on your altars glows the flame 
Sacred to Truth and Charity; 

Each Craft before the Sacked Name 
Bows low in mute sincerity ; 

And peace hath like a spirit shone 

"Within the walls of Lexington. 



So mote it be till time shall end ! 

May circling ages bless the Band 
That build the Mystic Temple here, 

And round the Mystic Altar stand t 
Eternity shall gild the flame 
Of Lexington's thrice-honored name ! 



cuihllnng (Together. 



In thought, word and deed, 

"We too are agreed, 
From the same Fount of Knowledge instructed ; 

And by the same hand 

We'll travel or stand, 
To the same Goal of triumph conducted. 

Through the same open door, 

W« lame, blind and poor 
Undertook the same mystic endeavor ; 

Through the same grave at last, 

When death's trial is past, 
Well share the forever and ever. 

Our friends are the same, 

Whatever their name, 
Whatever their station or nation ; 

The same are our foes, 

Whose malice but shows 
Their hearts black with coming damnation. 

We too, then, can walk, 

Sit, stand, work or talk, 
In union make sign or give token, 

And while life remains 

With its losses and gains 
Let's see that the tie be not broken ! 



(Ssbortcttion to Cbaritn. 

"Tis but an hour — our life is but a span ; 
No summer rose so frail as dying man ; 
Did there no memory of our deeds survive, 
Death were more welcome than the happiest life. 

But the true heart shall live in mercy's deed ; 
The Record stands where every eye can read — 
Where countless myriads on the judgment -morn 
Shall see each charity our hands have done. 

What wondrous mercy doth the Master give 
That the true Workman in his Work shall live ! 
What wondrous power the dark grave defies — 
The Temple stands although the Builder dies ! 

Bear me in memory then, kind Friends and true 
As one who loved the Master's cause and you ! 
Join my poor name with yours in Mystic Chain 
Although we may not, cannot meet again ! 

And when the stroke of Death, long pending, falls, 
And I no more shall work on Temple-walls, 
Wreathe the Acacia green about my head 
And give one memory to your faithful dead. 



(The (Temple. 



A number of years since, the author projected a poem which, under 
the title, "The Nails of the Temple," should designate the names and 
services of those great men of the past and present generations to 
whose labor and sacrifices the Masonic Institution is chiefly indebted 
for its present high position in this country. The stanzas following 
an hut the opening of the design which now, it is most likely, will 
ur\ it be resumed. 

No human wisdom framed our halls, 
No bodily sweat bedews our walls ; 
The utmost ken of mortal eye 
Fails its proportions to espy ; 
Nor is it for a mortars ear 
Its songs at eve and morn to hear. 

Our temple crowns no earthly bill ; 
The Turk profanes Mount Sion still ; 
Siloam pours her hallowed stream 
For those who spurn the sacred Name ; 
Yet fixed on our unshaken base 
Is seen our Temple's resting-place. 

"Unnumbered hearts and hopes prolong 
The cadence of our votive song ; 
The savor of our sacrifice 
Ascends and gladdens up the skies, 
Where Builders met from many lands 
Rear up " the House not made with hands !" 



193 



We -would record some fitting phrase 
Of those sublime, those mystic lays ; 
Some names of the unnumbered Host 
Else 'neath the moss of ages lost ; 
One episode in all those cares 
Whose story marks three thousand years. 

Author of Wisdom, make us wise 
To apprehend these Mysteries ! 
Author of Strength, the power impart 
To build and cement from the heart ! 
Author of Beauty, lend us grace 
The hue to paint, the line to trace ! 

The stones of the foundation 

In the Holy Mountain lie, 
Brought from the sacred quarries 

By the hand of Deity ; 
Each Block " the perfect angle " 

Fi^fills and gratifies— 
It rests upon the level 

Acknowledged in the skies. 

Each on its broadside graven 
Displays some mighty name ; 

"Tis daily called in Heaven 
That roll of deathless fame : 



194 THE TEMPLE. 

All ages, lands have yielded 
Their honored names to prop — 

A glorious substructure — 
And bear our Temple up. 

In such a sacred place, 

On such a solid base, 
Built on the jjattern of the Plan Divine, 

With time-defying walls 

With love-o'erflowing halls, 
Behold our Temple and come view our Shrine ! 

The mind would faint and fail, 

The multitudes to tell, 
Of all the Ashlars that are here inwrought ; 

They're culled from every clime, 

Through long-revolving time 
And each bears token of the Master-thought. 



Each bears the impress of Man — 
Such was the wondrous Plan, 

Of man in body, mind and heart complete ; 
Each fills a stated place 
Of Wisdom, Strength, or Grace 

By the Grand Master designate and meet. 



She W&wz €hota of Salomon. 



In Gibeon the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream by night ; 
and God said, " Ask what I shall give thee." 

And Solomon said, " Give thy servant an understanding heart to 
judge thy people, that I may discern between good and bad." 

And God said unto him, " Behold, I have done according to thy 
words. Lo, I have given thee a wise and discerning heart so that 
there was none like thee before thee, neither after thee shall any arise 
like unto thee." — 1 Kino-s, iii., 5-12. 



When in the dreams of night he lay, 

Fancy-led through earth and air, 
Whispered from the heavenly way, 

The voice of promise met his ear ; 
Taney ceased his pulse to thrill — 

Gathered home each earnest thought — 
And his very heart was still 

Awhile the gracious words he caught. 

" Ask me whatsoe'er thou wilt, 

Fame, or wealth, or royal power — 
Ask me, ask me, and thou shalt, 

Such favors have as none before ! " 
Silence through the midnight air — 

Silence in the thoughtful breast — 
What of all that's bright and fair, 

Appeared to youth and hope the best ? 



106 THE WISE CHOICE OF SOLOMON. 

'Twas no feeble tongue replied, 

While in awe his pulses stood ; — 
" Wealth and riches be denied, 

But give me Wisdom, voice of God ! 
Give me Wisdom in the sight, 

Of the people thou dost know ! 
Give me of thyself the light, 

And all the rest I will forego ! " 

Thus, oh Lord, in visions fair, 

When we hear thy promise-voice, 
Thus like him will we declare, 

That Wisdom is our dearest choice ! 
Light of heaven ! ah, priceless boon, 

Guiding o'er the troubled way, 
What is all an earthly sun, 

To his celestial, chosen ray ! 

Wisdom hath her dwelling reared * — 

Lo the mystic pillars seven ! 
Wisdom for her guests hath cared, 

And meat, and bread, and wine hath given ; 
Turn we not, while round us cry 

Tongues that speak her mystic word ; 
They that scorn her voice shall die, 

But whoso hear are friends of God. 

* Proverbs, 9, 1-9. 



n Celestial j^torb; 



An English Mason, whose name has never been made public, 
donated considerable sums of money about the year 1852, and made 
the "Western Grand Lodges his almoners for its disbursement in Ma- 
sonic charities. 



"Written in Heaven 

What lie has given ! 
Placed on the records in letters of gold ; 

Eead by the spirits, 

Judges of merits- 
Some day the name to us all will be told. 

Meantime let silence, 

Free from all violence, 
Drop its mute vail o'er the face of the man ; 

Seek not to show it — 

Strive not to know it — 
Go and do likewise, ye Brothers, who can. 

Blest was the offering ; 

Voices of suffering 
-Hushed under sympathy noble as that ; 

Tear-drops were trailing — 

Sighs and bewailing 
And tear-drops and sorrow the orphans forget. 



198 THE PERFECT ASHLARS. 

England, our Mother, 

Toward thee each Brother 
Reverently turns at this noble emprise ; 

" This makes the cable 

Holy and stable, 
Binding our Lodges forever," he cries. 



% f nfcrf !4Iars. 

The sunbeams, from the Eastern sky, 
Flash from yon blocks, exalted high, 
And on their polished fronts proclaim 
The framer and the builder's fame. 

Glowing beneath the fervid noon, 
Yon marble dares the Southern sun, 
Yet tells that wall of fervid flame, 
The framer and the builder's fame. 

The chastened sun, adown the West, 
Speaks the same voice and sinks to rest; 
No sad defect, no flaw to shame 
The framer and the builder's fame. 

Beneath the dewy night, the sky 
Lights up ten thousand lamps on high ; 
Ten thousand lamps unite to name 
The framer and the builder's fame. 



LAST WORD. 199 



Perfect in line, exact in square, 
These Ashlars of the Craftsmen are, 
They will to coming time proclaim 
The framer and the builder's fame. 



«&* fast, fast Moti. 

There is no form of prayer in which so much pathos and affec- 
tionate yearnings can be conveyed, as the expression " farewell." The 
following is accompanied in the recitation with appropriate cere- 



The last, last word — oh let it tell, 
The very soul of love — fare well. 
Fare well in heart, in health, in store- 
In going out — in coming in — 
Show us, oh Father, all Benign ! 
May man's respect, and woman's smile, 
And childhood's prattle to beguile, 
Be yours, be yours forever more ! 
By every impulse that can swell 
The loving heart, fare well, fare well ! 

Fare well — the lights grow dim — the tear 

Lingers and sparkles in the eye ; 

" So mote it be " I faintly hear, 

Winged on the breath of answering sigh ; 



200 THE LAST, LAST "WORD. 

It is the voice of sympathy, 

And tells of a Fraternal Tie 
Once, twice, and thrice about us wound, 
When first on Consecrated ground 
We walked the dark mysterious round ; 

By all the secrets it doth tell 

Of Bonds and Links, and Love, fare well ! 

Fare well — what other word besides 
Conveys the spirit of God's Word, 
Around, above, beneath whose lids, 
We wove the Indissoluble Cord ! 
Had I the tongue with power to say 
All that the hand expert can tell 
Of Signs, and grips, and Mystic way, 
I could but say, but say fare well ! 
I could but say " May God thus do 
By me should I e'er prove untrue ! " 
And my choked utterance would prove 
How weak are words to tell my love. 

Then let the hand speak what it should 
And will to witness noblest things ! 

The bounding Heart responds and brings 
Its godlike powers to compass good ; 
The answering Heavens admit the plea 
And vouch a present Deity ! 
Angels my loving wishes swell, 
And God himself proclaims fare well ! 



